GREEN BAY, WI – The University at Buffalo men's
basketball team earned their third straight win by defeating the
University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, 71-65, at the Resch Center on
Tuesday evening. Senior Rodney Pierce scored a career-high 29
points in 37 minutes of action to lead the Bulls to victory in the
first-ever meeting between the teams.
The Bulls (6-3) opened the contest at the line, which would be a
key factor in their victory. Buffalo shot an impressive 11-for-12
from the line with Pierce going 6-for-6.
Trailing by two at 16:35, senior John Boyer caused a Green Bay
turnover, leading to a Pierce layup off a pass by Calvin Betts to
tie the contest at 8-8.
In the remaining minutes, the Phoenix managed to hold the lead for
the entire half. At one point, the Phoenix pushed their lead to a
nine-point advantage with 4:58 remaining on the clock.
Chiseling away at Green Bay's lead, Boyer hit a
three-pointer at 2:51 to pull the Bulls within two, 32-30. In the
final 2:51 of the half, Pierce scored the Bulls' final seven
points. With no time remaining, Pierce stroked a three-pointer from
two feet behind the top of the arc to give UB a 37-35 lead heading
into the break.
Through the first 11 minutes of the second half, the Bulls held the
lead until the Phoenix tied the contest at 50-50 off a jumper by
leading scorer Rahmon Fletcher. Green Bay would take the lead for
the only time in the half with 8:20 remaining. Boyer would erase
Green Bay's one-point lead with his second three-pointer off
an assist by Betts.
In the final eight minutes of the half, the Bulls would continue to
extend their lead. In a span of two minutes, sophomore Dave Barnett
scored seven of his career-high nine points to give the Bulls a
nine-point lead with 5:31 remaining.
In the final five minutes, the Phoenix pulled within two points of
the Bulls' lead three times but were unable to tie the
contest. The final five points of the second half would come at the
free throw line, where the Bulls began the game. Perfect free throw
shooting from Betts and Pierce in the final 18 seconds would seal
the win for the Bulls.
"I thought we persevered through some difficulty with
turnovers in the first and second half but we were strong with the
basketball. We shot the ball well from the free throw line, making
11 of our 12 shots," said head coach Reggie Witherspoon.
"We are learning to play together."
Three Green Bay players reached double digits as Fletcher led the
Phoenix with 19 points and Bryquis Perine added 14 points. Troy
Cotton ended the game with 12 points off four first-half
three-pointers.
In a career-high 22 minutes, Barnett scored nine points. Betts
finished with eight points, seven rebounds, four assists and three
steals in 35 minutes. Also playing 35 minutes, Boyer recorded nine
points, six assists and five rebounds.
In just their second all-time trip to the state of Wisconsin, the
Bulls remain undefeated at 2-0. The Bulls' first victory came
on January 5, 1978 as they defeated the University of
Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 78-75.
The Bulls will return to action when they hit the road to compete
in the University of Central Florida Holiday Classic in Orlando,
Florida. Play will begin on Tuesday, December 29 against
Jacksonville at 4:30 pm and conclude on Wednesday, December 30 when
the Bulls play either host UCF or Liberty.