Buffalo Bulls men's basketball
Buffalo Bulls | |||
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University | University at Buffalo, the State University of New York | ||
Conference |
MAC East Division | ||
Location | Buffalo, NY | ||
Head coach | Nate Oats (2nd year) | ||
Arena |
Alumni Arena (Capacity: 6,100) | ||
Nickname | Bulls | ||
Colors |
Royal Blue and White[1] | ||
Uniforms | |||
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NCAA Tournament appearances | |||
2015, 2016 | |||
Conference tournament champions | |||
2015, 2016 | |||
Conference regular season champions | |||
2009, 2015 | |||
Conference division season champions | |||
2009, 2014, 2015 |
The Buffalo Bulls men's basketball team represents the University at Buffalo in Buffalo, New York, United States. The team currently competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level as a member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Division. Buffalo began play in 1915 and joined the MAC in 1998. They won their first MAC East Division title in 2009, and won a third MAC East Division title in 2015 along with their first outright MAC Regular-Season championship and first MAC Tournament title to earn the program's first bid to the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. The Bulls also have six appearances in the NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Championship between 1957 and 1965 and one appearance in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). They are coached by Nate Oats, who was hired as head coach in April 2015. Home games are played at the 6,100-seat Alumni Arena, which opened in 1982.
Conference affiliations
- 1915–16 to 1942–43 – Independent
- 1943–44 to 1944–45 – no team due to World War II
- 1945–46 to 1977–78 – Independent
- 1978–79 to 1987–88 – State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC)
- 1988–89 to 1990–91 – Mideast Conference
- 1991–92 to 1993–94 – East Coast Conference
- 1994–95 to 1997–98 – Mid-Continent Conference (Mid-Con)
- 1998–99 to present – Mid-American Conference
Postseason
NCAA Division I Tournament
The Bulls have appeared in the NCAA Division I Tournament two times. Their combined record is 0–2.
Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | 12 | Round of 64 | #5 West Virginia | L 62–68 |
2016 | 14 | Round of 64 | #3 Miami | L 72–79 |
NCAA Division II Tournament results
The Bulls have appeared in the NCAA Division II Tournament six times. Their combined record is 5–8.
Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
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1957 | Regional Semifinals Regional Finals Elite Eight | Capital Evansville Kentucky Wesleyan | W 75–64 W 77–75 L 68–72 |
1958 | Regional Semifinals Regional 3rd Place Game | American Wagner | L 60–77 L 65–72 |
1959 | Regional Semifinals Regional 3rd Place Game | Saint Michael's Williams | L 51–53 W 78–53 |
1960 | Regional Semifinals Regional 3rd Place Game | Wabash Arkansas State | L 65–76 W 53–52 |
1963 | Regional Semifinals Regional 3rd Place Game | South Carolina State Youngstown State | L 63–80 L 53–65 |
1965 | Regional Semifinals Regional Finals | Randolph-Macon Akron | W 81–69 L 58–69 |
NIT results
The Bulls have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) one time. Their record is 1–1.
Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2005 | Opening Round First Round | Drexel Saint Joseph's | W 81–76 L 50–55 |
Alumni Arena
The Buffalo Bulls play their home games at Alumni Arena, located in Amherst, New York. The arena seats 6,100 spectators and features a state of the art video-board, sound, and lighting systems.
Notable former players
Notable alumni include:
- Turner Battle: MAC Player of the Year (2005), former Bulls assistant coach
- Yassin Idbihi: basketball player for Bayern Munich
- Javon McCrea: basketball player for Medi Bayreuth of the Bundesliga
- Sam Pellom: Played for the Atlanta Hawks (1979–82) & Milwaukee Bucks (1982–83)
- Mitchell Watt, basketball player for Ironi Nes Ziona of the Israeli Basketball Super League
All-Americans
The following Buffalo players were named NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans:
- Turner Battle – 2005 (AP Honorable Mention)[2]
- Mitchell Watt – 2012 (AP Honorable Mention)[3]
- Javon McCrea – 2014 (AP Honorable Mention)[4]
- Justin Moss – 2015 (AP Honorable Mention)[5]
Academic All-Americans
The following Buffalo players were named Academic All-Americans:
- Turner Battle – 2005
Mid-American Conference award recipients
Player of the Year
- Turner Battle – 2005[6]
- Mitchell Watt – 2012[6]
- Javon McCrea – 2014[6]
- Justin Moss – 2015[7]
Tournament MVP
Coach of the Year
- Reggie Witherspoon – 2004[6]
Freshman of the Year
- Javon McCrea – 2011[6]
Sixth Man of the Year
- Mark Bortz – 2005[6]
Academic All-MAC
- Mark Bortz – 2004, 2005[6]
- Turner Battle – 2003, 2004, 2005[6]
- Vadim Fedotov – 2009[6]
- John Boyer – 2010[6]
- Byron Mulkey – 2011[6]
- Tony Watson II – 2012[6]
- Will Regan – 2013, 2014[6]
All-MAC teams
All-MAC First Team
- Turner Battle – 2005[6]
- Rodney Pierce – 2009, 2010[6]
- Mitchell Watt – 2012[6]
- Javon McCrea – 2012, 2013, 2014[6]
- Justin Moss – 2015[10]
All-MAC Second Team
- Turner Battle – 2004[6]
- Calvin Cage – 2006[6]
- Byron Mulkey – 2011[6]
- Shannon Evans II – 2015[10]
All-MAC Third Team
All-Freshman Team
- Yassin Idbihi – 2004[6]
- Javon McCrea – 2011[6]
- Jarryn Skeete – 2013[6]
- Shannon Evans II – 2014[6]
- Lamonte Bearden – 2015[10]
- C.J. Massinburg – 2016[11]
All-Defensive Team
- Willie Conner – 2016[11]
All-Tournament Team
References
- ↑ "Color Palette". University at Buffalo. Retrieved 2016-06-28.
- ↑ "Hamilton Earns Honorable Mention All-America Honors". GoHolyCross.com. College of the Holy Cross. March 22, 2005. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
- ↑ "Mitchell Watt Earns AP All-America Honorable Mention Honors". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 26, 2012. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
- ↑ "Javon McCrea Named AP All-America Honorable Mention". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 31, 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
- ↑ "Justin Moss Named AP All-America Honorable Mention". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 30, 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 "2014 MAC Record Book" (PDF). MAC-Sports.com. Mid-American Conference. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
- ↑ "Justin Moss Named MAC Player Of The Year". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 11, 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
- 1 2 3 Wright, Branson (March 14, 2015). "Buffalo Bulls forward Xavier Ford named MVP of MAC Tournament 2015: Notebook (photos)". Cleveland.com. The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Wright, Branson (March 12, 2016). "Buffalo Bulls' Willie Connor named tournament MVP: MAC Tournament 2016 (video)". Cleveland.com. The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
- 1 2 3 "MAC Announces Men's Basketball All-MAC, All-Freshman Teams". MAC-Sports.com. Mid-American Conference. March 9, 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 "MAC ANNOUNCES MEN'S HOOPS ALL-MAC, ALL-FRESHMAN & ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAMS". Mid-American Conference. March 7, 2016. Retrieved 16 March 2016.