Very Necessary

Coming off of a four game losing streak and with the possibility of starting off their conference schedule 0-3, the Buffalo Bulls women's basketball team needed a win in Eastern Michigan in the worst way.

In a game with five lead changes and seven ties, the Bulls went in to action with the Eagles and took their first MAC victory in a 71-65 decision. Buffalo is now 8-5, while 1-2 in the conference.

Head Coach Cheryl Dozier's move of giving Kim Kilpela the bulk of the minutes at forward instead of Rachel Martin may be paying off immediate dividends.

The game was won on the glass and at the line, with Kilpela ripping down 10 rebounds in the game, six of them offensive, which was more than the entire Eastern Michigan roster. UB also shot 67 percent from the line, better than Eastern Michigan's 60 percent.

Kilpela also led UB in points with 17 off the bench. This was Kiplela's first double-double of the year. Junior Jessica Kochendorfer also contributed 10 points inside the paint.

"I'm proud of how we battled," said Dozier. "We could have hung our heads with our 0-2 start in the conference, but instead we had a good few days of practice and battled back. Kim Kilpela came off the bench strong when we really needed her, and we had great balance again throughout our lineup which is how we've won games all year."

A strong outing in the second half helped propel UB into the lead 45-37. It wouldn't last, as Eastern Michigan launched a comeback and tied the game with close to five minutes remaining. The Eagles would get as close as two points, until Senior Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe drained four free throws in the final 20 seconds.

The Bulls endured a back and forth first half and entered the locker room at halftime down 32-30.

The loss drops Eastern Michigan to 5-9 with a 2-1 MAC record. Notably, Eagles Junior Marion Crandall topped her career high scoring total for the second consecutive game, at 19 points.

UB will end its non-conference season against Cornell on Monday, Jan. 20 at 7 p.m. in Alumni Arena.