ATHENS, OH – Ohio senior Maurice Ndour capped off a 31-point afternoon by scoring the game-winning basket with one second left as the host Bobcats defeated the Buffalo Bulls, 63-61, Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center.
Ndour’s big day included a 10-for-10 performance at the charity stripe. Ryan Taylor added 12 points and Antonio Campbell led all players with 10 rebounds as Ohio recorded its second straight win after dropping its first four MAC outings.
Buffalo (12-6, 3-3 MAC) fell for the second consecutive game – the first time this season that the Bulls have dropped to in a row.
Buffalo was led by 11 points each from Justin Moss and Xavier Ford. Junior Raheem Johnson finished with a career-high 10 points, all coming in the second half, before he fouled out of the contest. Wigginton added eight points and tied Moss with seven rebounds, good for team-high honors.
Sophomore Shannon Evans added eight points, while Lamonte Bearden finished with seven points and Skeete added six on a pair of three pointers.
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Ndour’s big day included a 10-for-10 performance at the charity stripe. Ryan Taylor added 12 points and Antonio Campbell led all players with 10 rebounds as Ohio recorded its second straight win after dropping its first four MAC outings.
Buffalo (12-6, 3-3 MAC) fell for the second consecutive game – the first time this season that the Bulls have dropped to in a row.
Buffalo was led by 11 points each from Justin Moss and Xavier Ford. Junior Raheem Johnson finished with a career-high 10 points, all coming in the second half, before he fouled out of the contest. Wigginton added eight points and tied Moss with seven rebounds, good for team-high honors.
Sophomore Shannon Evans added eight points, while Lamonte Bearden finished with seven points and Skeete added six on a pair of three pointers.
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Neither team ever led by more than seven points in a game that seemed to go back and forth for all 40 minutes. The Bulls took a four-point lead midway through the first half as they received a spark off the bench from junior Rodell Wigginton, who had a pair of put-back dunks and a jumper, giving the Bulls a 20-16 edge.
Ohio answered with a 13-2 run as it took its largest lead of the game at 29-22 with 4:30 left. However, UB answered with a 9-1 run of its own, as a pair of free throws from Xavier Ford put UB up 31-30 before a layup from Ndour ended the half with Ohio ahead, 32-31.
The Bobcats built an early six point lead in the second half, but a 12-2 run from the Bulls put them at a 43-39 advantage. A three pointer from junior Jarryn Skeete gave UB its largest lead of the game at 52-45 and the Bulls remained ahead by that margin with 5:37 left.
Ohio began to chip away at the lead and went on a 14-4 run, taking a three-point lead with 56 seconds left. Skeete tied the game up with a big three pointer with 41 seconds remaining and the Bulls had the ball with a chance to win it.
Skeete missed a floating layup with two seconds left and Ohio called a timeout following the rebound. A long pass from Antonio Campbell found its way into the hands of Ndour, who converted with the two-handed dunk. A last second desperation three by Skeete was just off the mark at the buzzer.
"We wanted to have someone on the ball to make sure that they didn't get off a clean pass," said Buffalo head coach Bobby Hurley. "Unfortunately it did not work out for us and Ndour is a great player in our league, and he had a big day and made the big play to win it."
UB had a huge advantage on the boards in the game, 45-30 and led in the points in the paint, 32-28. The Bulls also outscored the Ohio bench, 29-5. Overall, Buffalo had one more field goal (23-22), but Ohio registered two more threes and two more free throws
After being just one of two teams in the league to start MAC play with four of the first six on the road, the Bulls will open a two-game home stand on Tuesday night with a rematch against Western Michigan at 7:00 pm.
Ohio, meanwhile, hits the road for its next to games. Eastern Michigan is first up (Tuesday, 7 p.m. ET), followed by Central Michigan (Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET).
(Courtsy of UB Athletics/MRO edit)
Ohio answered with a 13-2 run as it took its largest lead of the game at 29-22 with 4:30 left. However, UB answered with a 9-1 run of its own, as a pair of free throws from Xavier Ford put UB up 31-30 before a layup from Ndour ended the half with Ohio ahead, 32-31.
The Bobcats built an early six point lead in the second half, but a 12-2 run from the Bulls put them at a 43-39 advantage. A three pointer from junior Jarryn Skeete gave UB its largest lead of the game at 52-45 and the Bulls remained ahead by that margin with 5:37 left.
Ohio began to chip away at the lead and went on a 14-4 run, taking a three-point lead with 56 seconds left. Skeete tied the game up with a big three pointer with 41 seconds remaining and the Bulls had the ball with a chance to win it.
Skeete missed a floating layup with two seconds left and Ohio called a timeout following the rebound. A long pass from Antonio Campbell found its way into the hands of Ndour, who converted with the two-handed dunk. A last second desperation three by Skeete was just off the mark at the buzzer.
"We wanted to have someone on the ball to make sure that they didn't get off a clean pass," said Buffalo head coach Bobby Hurley. "Unfortunately it did not work out for us and Ndour is a great player in our league, and he had a big day and made the big play to win it."
UB had a huge advantage on the boards in the game, 45-30 and led in the points in the paint, 32-28. The Bulls also outscored the Ohio bench, 29-5. Overall, Buffalo had one more field goal (23-22), but Ohio registered two more threes and two more free throws
After being just one of two teams in the league to start MAC play with four of the first six on the road, the Bulls will open a two-game home stand on Tuesday night with a rematch against Western Michigan at 7:00 pm.
Ohio, meanwhile, hits the road for its next to games. Eastern Michigan is first up (Tuesday, 7 p.m. ET), followed by Central Michigan (Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET).
(Courtsy of UB Athletics/MRO edit)
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