BUFFALO, N.Y. – The University at Buffalo men’s basketball program (0-0, 0-0 MAC) won their lone exhibition on Wednesday night against the Mercyhurst Lakers (0-0, 0-0 NEC), 71-66. The Bulls donned the new Broadview jersey patch in their first game in Broadview Arena.
Buffalo’s perimeter shooting proved decisive. The Bulls connected on 10 of their 24 three-pointers while limiting Mercyhurst to just 3-of-15 from beyond the arc.
The Lakers had their way in the paint as they outscored the Bulls 34-20. Buffalo’s defense quickly turned into offense as they scored 19 points off turnovers to the Lakers’ six.
J.J. Starling lit up the scoresheet with a team-leading 14 points, nine boards and five assists. Also scoring in double figures were Mikkel Tyne with 13 points as Antoine Lorick and Drew Steffe both had 12 points. Steffe added a game-high four steals following a solid defensive effort.
The Bulls came out to a sluggish start as they fell into a 6-0 hole just over three minutes into the contest. Buffalo didn’t get their first lead until a Tyne three-pointer with 8:59 left in the first to make it 18-17. The Lakers then regained the lead, but in the final four minutes, the Bulls never trailed as they headed to the locker room with a 35-32 lead.
Mercyhurst quickly came out of the break with a 10-3 run to go up 42-38, forcing the Bulls to use an early timeout. The Lakers pushed their lead to five a few times, but Buffalo then settled down to take a 52-51 lead with 8:29 left in regulation. The Bulls then made it a three-possession game with yet another Tyne three-pointer with 4:12 left. A few minutes later, the Bulls went up 10 points at 67-57 with just under two minutes remaining, their largest lead of the night. The Lakers chipped away, but it was too little too late as the Bulls controlled the clock to come out with the win.
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BUFFALO LEADERS
J.J. Starling: 37:18 MP, 14 pts, 9 reb, 5 asst, blk
Mikkel Tyne: 13 pts, 3-5 3PTFG, 2 asst
Antoine Lorick: 5-7 FG, 12 pts, 7 reb, stl, 3 blks
Drew Steffe: 36:16 MP, 12 pts, 5 reb, 3 asst, 4 stls
TEAM STATS
Mercyhurst Lakers: 42.1 FG% (24-of-57), 20.0 3PTFG% (3-of-15), 83.3 FT% (15-of-18), 37 Reb., 16 Asst., 11 TO, 5 Stl., 4 Blk.
Buffalo Bulls: 44.7 FG% (21-of-47), 41.7 3PTFG% (10-of-24), 73.1 FT% (19-of-26), 30 Reb., 13 Asst., 11 TO, 6 Stl., 6 Blk.
The Bulls will begin the regular season on Monday, Nov. 2 at Marshall for the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge.
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