The last time the Bulls matched up with the Ohio Bobcats, UB was in dire straights.
Buffalo had lost their previous four games heading into the Jan. 14 match up, and hadn't won a conference road game in its previous 18 tries.
But that was a different Bulls team. That was long before UB became the Mid-American Conference's hottest team, knocking off MAC powerhouses Kent State and Miami (Ohio). That was before the Bulls had their confidence, which has helped them go on a 9 of 11 game tear through the conference.
If UB plans on keeping this roll going they had better not overlook the Bobcats in tonight's game, their last regular season home contest of the year. Ohio has shown that although they have floundered at times throughout the season, they have been able to play the role of the spoiler as well.
The Bobcats have had big wins over some decent MAC teams, including Miami and Ball State. They also took the win in the Jan. 14 match up with Buffalo, dominating UB en route to a final score of 90-76.
In that game, there were a number of things that the UB faithful hope they won't see when the teams take the court at 7 p.m. tonight in Alumni.
The Bulls got themselves into real trouble early on in that game with fouls. As a team, Buffalo was charged with 10 personals in the first half. Roderick Middleton, Calvin Cage and Jason Bird all picked up two early on, giving the Bobcats free reign over the floor. Eventually almost every UB player was in foul trouble, with Middleton finishing the game with four fouls and Mario Jordan fouling out.
"(Delvar) Barret and (Jaivon) Harris gave us trouble," said UB head coach Reggie Witherspoon. "They got a lead and then we got in foul trouble. Our guys weren't really ready for those type of minutes then."
Ohio took advantage of the foul situation to score 59 points in the second half, which was more than enough to overcome the Bulls' 14-point halftime lead.
"We had some problems at that point in the season playing with a lead," said Witherspoon. "They just kept fighting."
At that point in the season, many of UB's players were still struggling to find their identity on the court. Both Barret and Harris took advantage of the young Bulls, coming off the bench to score 15 and 25 points respectively. Harris was deadly from outside, shooting 6-11 from beyond the arc.
Ohio also got double-digit efforts from starters Thomas Stephens and Terrence Harbut who chipped in 12 and 14 points each.
The inside play of UB was also a big factor in the Bulls' loss. Buffalo struggled in the lane on both ends of the court, being outscored 40 -20 in the paint and out-rebounded 35-29.
"(The poor play in the paint was the result of) three things," said Witherspoon. "We were young, we were in foul trouble and the third thing was that they were aggressive and they didn't give up around the basket. So they did give us trouble around the basket."
UB's twin towers of Mark Bortz and Yassin Idbihi were also part of the reason for the Bulls' struggles. They combined to shoot just 4 of 13 from the floor on offense and were limited defensively. The pair also took part in UB's foul trouble. Bortz fouled out having played just 17 minutes and Idbihi had four fouls against him, limiting his effectiveness.
But the Bulls have undergone a metamorphosis in the last month and a half. Unless they suffer a major lapse, the Bulls are well aware of what hurt them there and will do things much differently than the last game.
Witherspoon also added that this time around Buffalo will have one big advantage: the Alumni Arena crowd.
"Our crowd is establishing itself as one of the best - if not the best - in the conference," said Witherspoon. "The bigger they get the better we play. As far as the other teams are concerned they're not playing against just our athletes, they're also playing against our students."
Tip off for the Bulls' final regular season home game is set for 7 p.m. tonight in Alumni Arena.
