CLEVELAND, Ohio — The University at Buffalo women's basketball team will head to the Mid-American Conference tournament championship game Saturday morning to face Ball State after a commanding win over Akron.
The Bulls beat down the Zips by 39 points, 82-43, and kept Buffalo’s path open to an automatic bid for the NCAA tournament.
Twenty-eight of those points came from Dyaisha Fair, the junior who is fourth in the nation in scoring. Freshmen Georgia Woolley chipped in 20 points, and Summer Hemphill had 12 rebounds. Senior Adebola Adeyeye also played a huge part with the Bulls' 46 points in the paint; she had 13 points and eight boards.
It wasn't all pretty, though. Buffalo turned the ball over 22 times, and it's something that Bulls coach Felisha Legette-Jack needed to learn from. Legette-Jack said that her team showed that it is resilient, and it's not about the end score but about how they powered through mistakes.
“Young people always believe success is, 'I won the game, and the score is better.' But success is when you keep going and taking one more step to become that,” Legette-Jack said.
“To see those young ladies, make mistakes today and just say 'my bad,' that’s what I was looking for. I was looking for that womanhood. These young people, they fill my heart, and I’m just so proud of what they're becoming. It’s special, and I’m witnessing it."
Legette-Jack said the matchup with Ball State, which upset the No. 1 seed Toledo, will be a dog fight. More than walking away with a trophy in hand, Legette-Jack said it’s not just about hanging up a banner and bragging rights.
“It’s not a university or athletic department, it's our family versus their team. We’re not trying to win championships at Buffalo. We’re trying to create a dynasty,” Legette-Jack said.
Buffalo will play Ball State at 11 a.m. for the MAC championship.
