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B.J. Walker

BUFFALO, NY ­ Kent State forward Bryan Bedford drained a three-pointer as time expired to hand the Bulls a heartbreaking 69-68 loss at Alumni Arena on Wednesday night.

With the game tied, 66-66, Turner Battle (Kernersville, NC/East Forsyth) drove the length of the floor and nailed a jumper with 2.3 seconds left to give the Bulls a two-point lead. However, following a timeout, Kent State's inbounds pass was deflected to a wide-open Bedford who drained the trey. It was Bedford's only bucket of the game and first three-pointer of the season.

It was a tough loss for the Bulls who played well and led for much of the game. Trailing 9-4 early in the contest, the Bulls mounted a 16-0 scoring run to take an 11-point lead. The Bulls held the lead until the 4:57 mark of the second half when a lay-up by Antonio Gates tied the contest, 58-58. Two Battle free throws and an emphatic dunk by Mark Bortz (Commerce Township, MI/Walled Lake Central) built the Bulls' lead back to four points with 3:35 left. However, it was too much Gates down the stretch, as the MAC's third leading scorer consistantly took the ball strong to the basket and either scored or drew a foul. Gates finished the game with 24 points and 11 rebounds, both game-highs.

"It was a tough one to swallow," head coach Reggie Witherspoon said. "We played better in this game than in a couple of the games we have won."

Despite the loss, Buffalo (3-10, 0-4) can pull many positives from the game. One such positive was the play of B.J. Walker (Cincinnati, OH/Mount Healthy). The freshman forward tallied career-highs with 21 points and 10 rebounds. The Bulls also got a gutty performance from Battle who scored 18 points and added seven rebounds and five assists.

Kent State's (10-2, 3-1) second-half comeback was sparked by the hot shooting of Eric Haut who scored 23 points, including six three pointers.

The Bulls will look to rebound from Wednesday night's loss when they travel to Central Michigan to face the Chippewas on Saturday afternoon.