BUFFALO, NY - Senior Mari McClure (Rochester Hills, MI/Rochester Adams) scored 12 of her game-high 18 points in the final 7:24 of the game, and senior Sonia Ortega (Chihuahua, Mexico/Cobach) recorded her second double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds to send the University at Buffalo women's basketball team to a convincing 62-49 win at Marshall on Saturday, February 3.

The Bulls and the Thundering Herd battled back and forth for the first 20 minutes of the game with Buffalo coming out on top with a slim 29-28 lead at halftime. After Marshall took a two-point lead, 35-33 with 16:25 left on the clock, freshman Jessica Kochendorfer (Allen, MI/Quincy) hit an easy layup and senior Tiffany Bell (Alexandria, VA/Hayfield) followed with three straight buckets to put the Bulls back on top, 41-35. Marshall answered back by scoring the next four points of the game, but a three-pointer by senior Tara Perrier (Aurora, Ontario/Aurora) and eight straight points by McClure gave Buffalo its first double-digit lead of the game, 52-42 with 5:08 remaining. McClure hit another jumper and two free throws before the final buzzer, helping Buffalo close the game with a 21-10 run. She also contributed four rebounds and three assists, while Bell finished with 12 points, five boards and four steals. Ortega added four assists, four steals and three blocks to go along with her 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Kochendorfer also finished in double figures in scoring with 10 points while also adding six rebounds and three blocks.

"Today's win was a great team effort," said UB head coach Cheryl Dozier. "We played a strong defensive game and kept them off the glass, and we got balanced scoring and quality minutes from our bench. Mari McClure also came through in the last seven minutes of the game when we needed a boost."

The Bulls outrebounded the Thundering Herd by a 41-34 margin and they forced 12 Marshall turnovers in the second half. Buffalo shot 44.8 percent from the floor (26-of-58) compared to Marshall's 36.5 percent (19-of-52).

Buffalo (14-6, 5-4 MAC) is home for its next two games, hosting Western Michigan on Wednesday, February 7 at 7 pm and Ball State on Saturday, February 10 at 1:30 pm. Wednesday's game against WMU is part of UB's 11th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day celebration, and WNBA star Sheryl Swoopes will make a special appearance prior to tip-off. Saturday's game against Ball State is a doubleheader with the UB men's basketball team, with both games being televised live on Fox Sports Networks and Empire Sports Network as MAC Game of the Week.