Sports - The Spectrum

Junior guard Autumn Jones walks to the bench as head coach Felisha Legette-Jack gives her a handshake. The Bulls are playing the Southern Florida Bulls on Saturday at 1:15 p.m. in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

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The edge: Buffalo vs. South Florida

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 15, 2018

It will be a battle of the Bulls in the first round of the women’s basketball NCAA Tournament.

Bulls head coach Nate Oats (side) and junior guard CJ Massinburg (side) talk to the media outside Prior Aviation before the Bulls left for Boise, Idaho. The Bull will take on projected top-five pick Deandre Ayton and the Arizona Wildcats.

SPORTS

David vs. Goliath: Buffalo takes on much larger Arizona and Deandre Ayton

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 15, 2018

The Bulls have a date with the No. 4 seed Arizona Wildcats and ESPN’s No. 3 ranked prospect in the upcoming NBA draft, Deandre Ayton. The Bulls will have their hands full with the Wildcats, who are loaded with future NBA players.

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Bulls receive program's first at-large bid

By Sports Desk | Mar. 15, 2018

The No. 11 Bulls will play the No. 6 Southern Florida Bulls on Saturday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament after receiving the program’s first at-large bid.

Bulls head coach Nate Oats lifts the MAC tournament trophy over his head. The Bulls have won three of the last four MAC tournaments and are both the MAC regular season and MAC tournament champions this year.

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The Bulls dynasty

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 12, 2018

CLEVELAND — The Bulls are now the Mid-American Conference regular season and MAC Tournament champions in the same year for the first time in school history. Buffalo (26-8, 15-3 MAC) came away with three wins, culminating in a 76-66 win over the Toledo Rockets (23-11, 13-5 MAC) Saturday night at Quicken Loans Arena. The win gave the Bulls their third MAC tournament title in four years –– a feat that has only been accomplished one other time in the 38-year history of the MAC Tournament.

Players from the women’s basketball team huddle in the MAC championship game against the Central Michigan Chippewas. The Bulls lost 96-91 but will now look for an at-large bid for the NCAA tournament.

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A chance for more magic for UB women's basketball

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 12, 2018

CLEVELAND –– Buffalo may have lost to the Central Michigan Chippewas on Saturday in the MAC Tournament championship final at the Quicken Loans Arena, but head coach Felisha Legette-Jack was still smiling at the postgame press conference. “What a wonderful opportunity to coach these young ladies,” said Legette-Jack after Saturday’s game.

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Buffalo wins third MAC title, spot in NCAA tournament

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 11, 2018

CLEVELAND — Buffalo is going to the big dance for the third time in four years.

The Bulls huddle during the MAC tournament finals on Saturday. The Bulls lost to the Central Michigan Chippewas 96-91 in the championship game.

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Bulls lose MAC finals to Central Michigan

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 10, 2018

CLEVELAND — The Bulls lost to the Central Michigan Chippewas 96-91 Saturday afternoon in the Mid-American Conference Tournament finals at Quicken Loans Arena.

Freshman guard Jayvon Graves follows through on a shot against the Kent State Golden Flashes. The Ohio-native had eight points and three blocks as the Bulls advance to Saturday's MAC tournament final.

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Bulls are back in finals

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 10, 2018

CLEVELAND — Buffalo is heading back to the Mid-American Conference Tournament finals for the third time in four years.

Junior guard Cierra Dillard takes a shot on Western Michigan. The Bulls moved on to the MAC tournament finals on Friday and will play in the championship game on Saturday at 11 a.m.

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Bulls advance to MAC tournament final

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 9, 2018

The Bulls beat the Western Michigan Broncos 85-53 Friday afternoon at the Quicken Loans Arena in the semifinals of the MAC tournament.

Junior guard CJ Massinburg fights through contact for the basket. He finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists to help the Bulls advance to the semifinals.

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Bulls move to semifinals

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 8, 2018

The Bulls are the first men’s team to secure their spot in the semifinals of the 2018 Mid-American Conference Tournament.

Senior guard Stephanie Reid goes for a shot. Reid had 22 points and 11 assist in the MAC tournament quarterfinal Wednesday evening.

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Bulls beat Golden Flashes in Cleveland

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 7, 2018

CLEVELAND — The Bulls beat the Kent State Golden Flashes 72-50 Wednesday evening at the Quicken Loans Arena. Senior guard Stephanie Reid led the team in scoring and assists with 22 points, 11 assists and 5 steals after being named to the All-MAC second team on Tuesday.

Sophomore guard Davonta Jordan goes to the basket for a shot. Jordan is fourth in the MAC with 4.3 assists per game this season.

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It starts now: Men's basketball MAC tournament preview

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 7, 2018

The Bulls will be walking in to Quicken Loans Arena on Thursday as the Mid-American Conference regular season champs for the first time. Cleveland will host the MAC basketball tournament for the thirteenth straight season.

Sophomore forward Summer Hemphill in action at Alumni Arena. Hemphill is considered one of the Bulls' top players who has potential to grow even more at UB.

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For family and nation

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 7, 2018

It’s hard to stand out on a team with 25 wins in the regular season and a roster stockpiled with talent.

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Buffalo has five players on all-MAC squads

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 5, 2018

The Mid-American Conference announced the selections for the all-MAC squads Monday. The Bulls tied with Eastern Michigan and Miami (OH) for the most selections at five.

The Bulls huddle during a game. The women's basketball team is looking to become MAC champions again this offseason.

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Time to reclaim

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 5, 2018

The Bulls have had a historic season without even going to the Mid-American Conference tournament yet.

Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack cuts the nets in honor of the Bulls winning the MAC East division. The Bulls have already set the program Division-I record for wins in a season.

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Bulls win final home game on senior night

By THOMAS ZAFONTE | Mar. 3, 2018

The Bulls beat the Bowling Green Falcons 74-38 Saturday afternoon at Alumni Arena in its final regular season game of the season and the final game for the team’s senior players. Katherine Ups and her sister, guard Liisa Ups, center Cassie Oursler, guard Stephanie Reid and forward Mariah Suchan were all honored in a senior night ceremony. All five received honorary framed jerseys after the game.

Junior pitcher Ally Power winds up for the pitch. The Bulls will play five games in the EMU invitational this weekend.

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The Bulls head to Madeira Beach

By Sports Desk | Mar. 1, 2018

The softball team is heading to the sunny shores of Florida for week three of the 2018 Eastern Michigan University Madeira Beach Spring Invitational starting Friday. The Bulls (5-7, 0-0 Mid-American Conference) head in having gone 4-0 in the Hampton Classic this past weekend. The team has already won more than half the games they did last season. Here is a breakdown of all five games the Bulls are scheduled for this weekend.

Senior guard Wes Clark going for the layup. The men’s basketball team won its first MAC season title Tuesday night.

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Cut down the nets

By NATHANIEL MENDELSON | Mar. 1, 2018

The Bulls are the Mid-American Conference regular season champions for the first time in school history. Buffalo (22-8, 14-3 MAC) hosted the Akron Zips (12-17, 5-12 MAC) on Tuesday night. The Bulls defeated Akron 80-68 in their final home game of the season, which was senior night for three players: forward Gabe Agorioge, guard Wes Clark and junior forward Ikenna Smart. The Bulls secured the number one seed in the MAC conference tournament with the win.

Junior guard Cierra Dillard attempts the layup in coverage. Dillard led the team in scoring in the Bulls' win over Kent State Wednesday night.

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Bulls make it eight straight wins in Kent

By Sports Desk | Mar. 1, 2018

The Bulls set a program record for most wins in a season with their 81-51 win over the Kent State Golden Flashes at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center Wednesday night.

Redshirt junior Bryan Lantry grapples with an opponent. Lantry will be looking to claim his first Mid-American Conference championship this weekend when the Bulls compete in the MAC wrestling championships.

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Wrestling team prepares for the MAC tournament

By DANIEL PETRUCCELLI | Mar. 1, 2018

This weekend, Jake Gunning gets a chance to defend the MAC heavyweight title he won a year ago. The Bulls wrestling team (5-12, 2-5 Mid-American Conference) heads to Mt. Pleasant, Michigan for the MAC wrestling championships. Gunning, a 285-pound junior, came away from last year’s event with a conference title and will be heading into this year’s event ranked no. 16 in the nation at his weight class.