Akron Downed By Buffalo, 91-72, In Offensive Shootout

Wednesday, January 23

Buffalo, NY

7 PM

University of Akron

Buffalo

Akron

Buffalo

Photo by: Jeff Harwell

Akron Downed By Buffalo, 91-72, In Offensive Shootout

January 23 | Women's Basketball

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BUFFALO, N.Y. – In its second game in four days, the Akron women's basketball team traveled to Buffalo, N.Y., to take on Buffalo that turned into an offensive shootout, but ultimately, fell to the Bulls, 91-72, in a Mid-American Conference East divisional showdown from inside Alumni Arena on Wednesday night.

It was an offensive battle from start to finish as the Zips and Bulls combined to connect on 60 field goals, however, Buffalo out-dueled the Akron offense. The Zips now stand 11-6 overall and 2-4 in MAC play, while the Bulls improved to 13-4 overall and 5-1 in league play.

Four Zips ended the contest in double-figures and as a team, Akron finished with a 48.2-percent clip from the floor (27-for-56), its second highest shooting percentage of the season. The Zips also turned in nine triples (36.0-percent) and went 9-for-12 (75.0) from the charity stripe.

Redshirt senior Megan Sefcik (Austintown, Ohio) scored a team-high 17 points for Akron by way of 6-for-12 from the field, four three-pointers and nine points in the second quarter alone. Junior Haliegh Reinoehl (Westfield, Ohio) scored 11 of her 15 points in the first quarter opening the contest with the hot hand and added five rebounds. Freshman Gabrielle Brown-Mitchell (Solon, Ohio) came on late in the contest en route to 13 points on the evening, which tied her season- and career-high. Junior point guard Shaunay Edmonds (Pittsburgh, Pa.) rounded out the Zips double-digit scorers notching 12 points, two steals, a pair of rebounds, and an assist.

Akron and Buffalo exchanged runs in the first two and a half minutes of the ball game. The Bulls blanked Akron in the first 53 seconds of the game and ran out to a 6-0 lead at the 9:07 mark. The Zips countered right back due in large part to Reinoehl. Akron scored eight unanswered points with the Zips junior forward knocking down her two three-pointers on the night.

The momentum of the quarter swung in favor of the Bulls with four minutes left to play in the period. Buffalo was awarded five free throws in a matter of 45 seconds and followed up with a Cierra Dillard lay-up for their second offensive spurt to increase its lead to +8 (19-11).

At the 3:48 mark of the second quarter, Buffalo extended its lead to a then game-high 18 points as the Bulls dominated the first half of the period. However, the Akron offense would not waiver and the Zips defense stepped up big in the final minutes of the period.

In just three minutes, Akron turned a double-digit deficit into nine points at the halftime intermission. The Zips used an 8-0 run that included a collective effort from junior Shayna Harmon (Ashville, Ohio), junior Caitlin Vari (Richfield, Ohio), and Sefcik. Harmon hit a jumper with just seconds left in the period to cap off the run.

The Zips took care of the ball much better in the second stanza than in the first 10 minutes of play. After turning the ball over seven times in the first quarter, which led to 13 UB points, Akron controlled possession of the ball turning it over just twice.

The third quarter was a high scoring period seeing 49 combined points and 18 combined field goals. Despite the Zips high shooting percentage (50-percent, 7-for-14), the Bulls again edged Akron hitting 11 of their 15 shots attempts. The Bulls notched a game-high 28 points in the period.

After trailing by 18 points heading into the fourth quarter, the Zips were down but not out. Brown-Mitchell and fellow freshman Kendall Miller (Akron, Ohio) put on a show down the stretch inside Alumni Arena in the fourth quarter scoring a combined 14 points.

However, the Bulls offensive firepower was too much to overcome in the final period of the contest handing UB the win.

The Zips return home to James A. Rhodes Arena for its third home Mid-American game of the league schedule on Saturday, Jan. 26. The Akron women's basketball team hosts Toledo in a MAC East vs. West showdown at 2 p.m.