BUFFALO STATE ATHLETICS
MORRISVILLE, N.Y. — Liv LeBaron (Corning/Corning East) completed a three-point play, scoring a contested layup and the ensuing free throw, with less than five minutes remaining to lift Buffalo State to a high-scoring 88-85 victory over host Morrisville in tonight’s non-conference season opener.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Buffalo State – 88, Morrisville State – 85
LOCATION: STUAC Gymnasium – Morrisville, N.Y.
RECORDS: Buffalo State (1-0), Morrisville (0-1)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Princella McCullough paced the Bengals’ offense with a career-high 25 points, six blocks and hauled in 21 rebounds, which ties the fourth-highest total in program history.
- Kaelee Lynch (Atwater, CA/Buhach Colony) finished 6 of 6 from 3-point range and 3 of 3 from the charity stripe for 21 points and added seven rebounds and five assists.
- Grace Licata (Williamsville/Williamsville South) chipped in 13 points on 6 of 9 shooting off of the bench.
- LeBaron finished with eight points, five steals and five assists.
- Buffalo State and Morrisville traded double-digit runs in the first half with the Bengals using a 13-6 run in the first quarter to take a 26-16 lead at the first intermission, and the Mustangs responding with a 17-7 run in the second quarter to even the score at 42-42 at halftime.
- The Bengals and the Mustangs matched each other point-for-point for much of the third quarter until Buffalo State closed on a 7-2 run to take a 63-57 lead after 30 minutes of action.
- After the Bengals used a fast break layup from Licata to take a 10-point lead with 2:57 left in the game, Morrisville used a 12-3 run to trim the lead to 83-82. Buffalo State extended the lead on its next possession with a pair of free-throws from McCullough with only 24 seconds left.
- After Morrisville tied the game at 85-85 off a 3-pointer from Miranda Wright, LeBaron drove the lane and converted the game-winning reverse layup while drawing the foul with only five seconds left. She then tallied the ensuing free throw to extend the lead to 88-85.
- The Mustangs had one final chance to even the score, but fell short as Buffalo State earned the thrilling victory.
- The Bengals shot 53.1 percent from the floor and finished with a 38-24 advantage in points in the paint.
- Morrisville was held to 37.8 percent from the field but forced 31 Buffalo State turnovers in the loss.
FOR THE FOES
- Alexis Campbell led the Mustangs with 26 points, seven assists and four rebounds.
- Tori Rockefeller chipped in 22 points and seven rebounds, while Sierra Henry added 16 points.
NOTEWORTHY
- The victory marks the first career win for head coach Marybeth Nugent.
- Buffalo State’s 88 points are its most scored in a contest since Nov. 15, 2014 when the Bengals dropped 90 points against Thiel College.
- The 173 combined points are the most in program history since Jan. 19, 2016, when Fredonia earned a 94-92 win over the Bengals in overtime.
UP NEXT
Buffalo State will travel down the Scajaquada Expressway to battle non-conference foe Medaille on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
