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Jason Bird

BUFFALO, NY ­ It was fitting that Buffalo's game against Ohio was played on the third day of the third month of the year, because three was the magic number at Alumni Arena on Wednesday night. The Bulls knocked down 10 three-pointers in the first half alone to build a 47-18 halftime advantage before cruising to a 77-49 victory over the Bobcats in the final home game of the regular season. It was the Bulls' sixth win in a row and first win over Ohio since joining the Mid-American Conference.

Jason Bird (Ypsilanti, MI/Ypsilanti) scored a season-high 19 points, including 3-for-4 from beyond the arc, to lead five UB players in double-figures on the night. Daniel Gilbert (Detroit, MI/Cass Technical) and Calvin Cage (Capital Heights, MD/Bladensburg) also drained three treys en route to 13 and 11 points, respectively.

The Bulls (15-11, 10-7) turned up the defensive pressure early and a steal by Roderick Middleton (University Park, IL/Marian Catholic) who fed Gilbert for a break away jam gave the Bulls a 7-2 lead. Following a jumper by Ohio's Clay McGowen, the Bulls mounted a 14-3 scoring run to take a 21-7 advantage. Bobcat forward Jaivon Harris drained a three-pointer to cut the UB lead to 24-15 with 8:10 left in the first half. However, the Bulls closed the half on a 23-3 run to take a commanding 47-18 lead at the break.

UB shooters cooled a bit in the second half, but they kept up their defensive intensity, preventing Ohio (9-19, 6-11) from making a run. The Bulls knocked down three more three-pointers in the second half to bring their total in the game to 14. It marks the second time in the last three games that UB has drained 14 treys, tying the second-highest single game effort in school history. Freshman walk-on Darwin Young (Buffalo, NY/Hutch Tech) even got into the act as his first career basket was of the three-point variety.

UB shot 52.7 percent (29-55) from the floor, including 50 percent (14-28) from long distance. It marks the third straight game that the Bulls have shot 50 percent or better from both the field and from beyond the arc. Defensively, Buffalo had 11 steals, forced 18 turnovers and held the Bobcats to 32.7 percent (17-52) shooting from the field. Harris came in as the top three-point shooter in the MAC. However, the Bulls held him to only eight points, including 1-for-5 from beyond the arc.

Turner Battle (Kernersville, NC/East Forsyth) finished with 12 points, six assists and three steals. Mario Jordan (Cleveland, OH/Benedictine) also reached double-figures with 10 points and a team-high six rebounds.

"Our guys had pretty good energy tonight," head coach Reggie Witherspoon said. "A lot of people will probably talk about the way we shot the ball tonight, but I think we defended pretty well. We made it as difficult as we possibly could on Ohio who is a great three-point shooting team."

The six-game winning streak is the Bulls' longest since the 1994-95 season.