Even though they faced defeat, the women's basketball team set a record while falling to the Northern Illinois Huskies in three overtimes Tuesday night.
The Bulls and Huskies battled for 55 minutes in DeKalb, Ill., with NIU winning the longest game in Buffalo women's basketball history, 81-72.
"It's frustrating to play than many overtimes without walking away with a win," said Bulls head coach Linda Hill-MacDonald. "I thought it was one of the best defensive efforts we've had. In terms of sticking to our game plan, we did what we intended to going in."
As the final ticks came off the regulation time clock, a lay-up by senior guard Brooke Meunier tied the score at 55 and sent the game into its first OT.
For the ensuing five minutes, the Bulls and Huskies traded baskets and the lead. Sophomore guard Stephanie Bennett hit a three pointer 1:30 into the second overtime, giving Buffalo a four-point lead. The Huskies battled back and led by two with 20 seconds to go. Junior forward Viorica Badinici hit a jumper with seven seconds remaining, tying the score at 67.
NIU was the first to score in double overtime with a lay-up by Jamie Wilson with 2:58 remaining. Buffalo answered back with a three pointer from Badinici, giving the Bulls a one-point lead. A minute later, Badinici fouled Wilson, sending her to the line and the NIU forward made one-of-two. Buffalo had two opportunities to score before time expired, but two missed jumpers from Meunier left the score tied at 70.
The Bulls fell apart in triple overtime, relinquishing a one-point lead with 3:23 to the eventual nine-point victory for the Huskies. Buffalo racked up seven fouls in the third overtime, allowing NIU nine chances at the foul line. The Huskies took full advantage, making seven.
"We need to learn to be more aggressive at taking the ball to the rim," Hill-MacDonald said. "We need to be less aggressive defensively when the game is being called the way it was, that's just another area for us to learn."
The Huskies shot 73.5 percent from the charity stripe, sinking 25-of-34 free throws and adding 14 points to their score in the three overtimes. NIU was 73.5 percent accurate from the foul line for the game.
"If you look at the statistics from that game, we scored more field goals," Hill-MacDonald said. "We put in more three point shots, rebounding was pretty even, turnovers were pretty even, but the one area that alluded us was the ability to get to the free throw line as many times as our opponents. If you take that disparity of free throw shooting out of the game, we win that game."
The referees weren't hesitant to blow their whistles against the Bulls, as Buffalo was called for 30 fouls compared to NIU's 19.
Buffalo had a short bench entering the game, but as the game progressed into three overtimes, the bench became shorter. Freshman forward Jamie Schiebner was the first Bull to leave the game due to fouls just a minute into the first overtime. Sophomore forward Heather Turner was called for her fifth foul less than a minute later. Sophomore guard Flynn Pyykkonen received her fifth foul with 20 seconds remaining in the first overtime. Bennett fouled out in the third overtime with 17 seconds left.
Four Bulls scored double-digits in the extended game. Meunier led the team with 17 points and Turner and Bennett were not far off with 16 points each.
Up until her fifth foul, Schiebner spent the entire game on the floor and had a stellar night, racking in a double-double with 12 points and 17 rebounds, 11 of which were on the defensive side of the ball. Schiebner's rebound total ties her for fourth place in school history for rebounds in a single game.
Buffalo heads out on the road again on Saturday for a match up at Ball State (12-7, 5-3 MAC). Julie DeMuth, who is scoring 12.3 points and grabbing 8.9 rebounds a game, leads the Cardinals. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m.
