Coming in losers of seven of eight, it looked like the Buffalo women’s basketball team would continue its skid Saturday.
Then came the second quarter.
Buffalo scored 31 points in that second quarter on 11-of-14 shooting – the team’s highest scoring quarter of the season. And with an offensive outburst by sophomore Stephanie Reid, the Bulls (12-11, 4-8 Mid-American Conference) avoided a three-game losing streak and gave themselves some life heading into the stretch run of the season.
The Bulls left the Stroh Center with a 63-50 win over Bowling Green (8-13, 4-8 MAC) on Saturday afternoon. Reid had a game-high 21 points and was 4 of 7 from behind the arc on a day where junior guard Joanna Smith struggled to find her shot.
“I just thought [Reid] stepped up tremendously,” said head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. “Managing the ball. Managing opportunities for herself and for the team … Everybody needs to stay ready, when your number’s called, you gotta be ready for that opportunity.”
Buffalo’s bench was huge Saturday, especially during the second quarter rally where it produced six points and played tenacious defense that helped turn the tide of the game. After Buffalo put up a paltry six point in the first quarter, it turned into a team effort to get back into the game.
The second quarter turned into the highest scoring quarter Buffalo had all season.
Reid, who scored 14 of her points and went 5-of-6 from the field in that quarter, led the attack. Smith had 11 points, seven in that second quarter, and nine rebounds for the game. The bench combined for 18 points and 17 rebounds.
After the game, Legette-Jack took much pride in the performance of her bench, which had struggled recently.
“It’s about team. We’re not Jo and Stephanie,” she said. “We’re Buffalo. And if we continue to step up, we can have some fun times down the stretch.”
Freshman center Mirte Scheper was perfect from the field and scored 11 points in 27 minutes of play. She and junior center Cassie Oursler have split starting duties since Oursler arrived in Buffalo, but Scheper picked up most of the minutes on Saturday. Oursler finished with one point in 12 minutes played.
Legette-Jack was also happy to see some much-needed fire out of sophomore forward Mariah Suchan.
“I just think she’s the best post defender on the team,” Legette-Jack said. “But she’s gotta give me the look in her eyes that she’s ready to go, and today she looked at me in that last minute of the first half, and I put her out there.”
With the victory, Buffalo is now in third place in the MAC East and would be an eight seed in next month’s MAC Tournament.
The Bulls will return home to face Eastern Michigan (15-8, 6-6 MAC) on Wednesday. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
Michael Akelson is a sports staff writer. Sports desk can be reached at sports@ubspectrum.com
Photo: Ryan Hagen | UB Athletics
