WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Roster  |  Coaches  |  Schedule / Results  |  News

Brooke Meunier

BUFFALO, NY - The University at Buffalo women's basketball team showed a lot of fight, overcoming a 12-point deficit midway through the second half to force overtime before eventually falling to the visiting Niagara Purple Eagles by a 68-65 score in front of 3,142 fans in Alumni Arena. Junior Brooke Meunier (Saginaw, MI/Heritage) led all scorers with a career-high 25 points, and freshman Heather Turner (West Seneca, NY/Mount Mercy Academy) (13 points, career-high 16 rebounds) and senior Allison Bennett (Springfield, OH/Kenton Ridge) (12 points, career-high 11 rebounds) both recorded double-doubles for the Bulls, who saw their record fall to 1-6 on the season. Niagara improved to 5-3 overall.

Niagara took a 10-0 lead to open the game, holding the Bulls scoreless until the 14:14 mark when a layup by Meunier finally got Buffalo on the board. After the Purple Eagles opened up a 13-point lead, their largest of the game, to go up 23-10 with 7:49 on the clock, the Bulls embarked on a 16-5 run to close the half and go to the lockerroom down by just two, 28-26. Meunier had eight points and one assist in the run to lead the Bulls' charge.

A jumper by freshman Stephanie Bennett (Springfield, OH/Kenton Ridge) on the opening possession of the second half tied the score, and Buffalo later took its first lead of the game, 31-30, on a three-pointer by Meunier at the 18:43 mark. Niagara, however, broke a 34-34 tie with a 13-1 run to go back up by 12, 47-35, with 10:07 remaining in regulation. The Bulls were held scoreless for over six minutes during the run before a three-pointer by Allison Bennett at 9:43 started their comeback. An 8-0 run got Buffalo within four, 47-43, with 8:40 to play, and a jumper by sophomore Belinda Gibb (Denmark, Western Australia/Willetton) at the 4:27 mark got the Bulls within one, 50-51. Niagara's Toni Smalley came up with a steal, an offensive rebound and a layup to give Niagara a 53-50 cushion at the 3:52 mark, but a three-pointer by Meunier tied things up with 2:01 on the clock. Niagara's Eva Cunningham answered with a jumper on the Purple Eagles' next possession, but Allison Bennett immediately followed with a jumper in the lane to tie the score at 55-55 with 1:10 to go in the second half. Both teams missed two shots in the final minute of play to send the game to overtime.

Heather Turner

A jumper by Meunier at the 2:24 mark of OT gave Buffalo a 62-61 lead, but Niagara's Shaunna Ambrose followed with a three-point play and Cunningham added two free throws to put NU up 66-62 with 12 seconds on the clock. A three-pointer by Meunier with eight seconds to go got the Bulls within one, 66-65, but Cunningham knocked down two clutch free throws with five seconds left and the Bulls' last-second shot didn't fall, securing the win for Niagara.

"We have no reason to hang our heads tonight," said UB head coach Cheryl Dozier. "I know the wins aren't coming right now, but this team has to take steps, and this can be a big step for us if we come into practice tomorrow and continue working. This team could have folded, but it didn't. It's a determined group of kids and they just buckled down. We executed and we put ourselves in the best position that we could have. We couldn't have done anything different in overtime to put us in a better position to win."

The Bulls shot 32.9 percent from the floor in the game (24-for-73) while Niagara shot 33.3 percent (24-for-72). Meunier's 25 points came on a career-high nine field goals, including a career-high five three-pointers. The Bulls outrebounded Niagara by a 62-43 margin, with Turner (16), Allison Bennett (11), Stephanie Bennett (nine) and Gibb (eight) all grabbing career highs. Niagara had four players finish in double figures in scoring, led by Chantelle Wilson with 19 points, including five three-pointers. Ambrose added 14 points and nine rebounds, and Smalley recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

The Bulls next hit the road for a 5:15 pm contest at Youngstown State on Tuesday, December 14.