Women's Basketball Game Notes vs. Akron (PDF) - Buffalo Athletics

2004-05 BUFFALO BASKETBALL
since December 13, 2003 when they put 52 on the board in the second half
of an 87-75 loss at Niagara (The Bulls equalled that mark with 45 points
in the second half at Ohio on January 29). The Bulls also hit twice their
season average for three-pointers in a game with eight against Miami.
Buffalo finished the game 8-for-12 from behind the arc, with four of the
threes coming from freshman Stephanie Bennett. The .667 three-point
shooting percentage is the best team performance in the MAC this season,
and the eight threes are the most the Bulls have scored in a game since
going 8-for-16 at Kent State on February 11, 2004.
Five Reach Double Figures
The Bulls had five players score in double figures in their loss at Akron on
January 19 – senior Talia Merlino and sophomore Belinda Gibb with 13
apiece, senior Allison Bennett and freshman Heather Turner with 11
apiece and junior Brooke Meunier with 10 - marking the first time since
December 8, 2002 versus Howard that the Bulls had five players reach
double digits in scoring in a game. Merlino, playing with a broken nose
suffered in practice the day before, came off the bench in the second half
and hit three straight three-pointers for a 9-0 Buffalo run and then added
four more points as the run extended to 15-4 midway through the second
half. Her 13 points are a career high, and she finished the game with four
three-pointers, tying her career high.
Crashing the Boards
The Bulls outrebounded Niagara by a 62-43 margin on December 11,
marking the most rebounds the Bulls have recorded in a game since
December 29, 1999 when they pulled down 64 boards in an 81-53 win
over Florida Atlantic. Four Bulls grabbed career highs in rebounds, led by
freshman Heather Turner with 16. Turner’s team-leading 16 rebounds
marked the first time in almost a year that a Buffalo player grabbed 15 or
more boards in a game (Kim Kilpela had 15 rebounds, also versus Niagara,
on December 13, 2003). Buffalo has outrebounded its oppenents in eight
of 18 games so far this season.
Double Double-Double
Senior Allison Bennett recorded her first career double-double against
Niagara on December 11 with 12 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
Freshman Heather Turner posted the second double-double of her
young career with 13 points and a career-high 16 rebounds, marking
the first time since the 2002-03 season that two Buffalo players posted a
double-double in the same game. The last time that happened before the
Niagara game was on February 16, 2003 versus Western Michigan when
Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe had 22 points and 11 rebounds and Kim Kilpela
had 15 points and 11 boards.
Stingy Defense
The Bulls held East Carolina to just 16 first-half points on January 2 to take
a 30-16 halftime lead. The 16 points are the fewest the Bulls have allowed
in a half this year and the fewest since the 2002-03 season when they held
both Cornell (January 20) and Akron (January 28) to 16 first-half points. The
14-point halftime lead is the Bulls’ largest since February 19, 2003 when they
led Ohio by 18 at the half, 46-28.
Getting Thrown Into the Fire
Only three players who played in the 2003-04 season opener versus Canisius
(Allison Bennett, Talia Merlino and Brooke Meunier) and four players
who played in the 2003-04 season finale against Marshall (Bennett, Merlino,
Meunier and Belinda Gibb) saw action in this season’s opener at defending
national champion Connecticut. Most impressive among the group making
their collegiate debuts was freshman Stephanie Bennett who had a teamhigh
10 points and a team-high five assists in 34 minutes. Freshman Heather
Turner scored the Bulls’ first bucket in the game and finished with six points
and a team-high five rebounds in 12 minutes of action.
Sister Act
Buffalo’s 2004-05 roster features a sister combo in Allison and Stephanie
Bennett. Allison, a senior, has been a three-year starter for the Bulls and is
a team co-captain. She is currently averaging 9.6 points per game (third on
the team) and 4.2 rebounds per game. Stephanie, a freshman, is averaging
6.6 points per game, 4.3 rebounds per game and a team-high 3.1 assists
per game thus far in her rookie campaign. Both Bennetts had successful
careers at Kenton Ridge High School in Springfield, OH. Allison scored
1,430 career points and Stephanie scored 1,616 career points, and both
were Springfield News-Sun Area Player of the Year and Clark County “Miss
Basketball” honorees.
Meunier Coming Off Solid Sophomore
Campaign
Junior Brooke Meunier had a breakout season in 2003-04, averaging 11.9
points and 5.2 rebounds per game after averaging just 4.4 points and 2.4
boards as a freshman in 2002-03. Meunier was second on the team and 18th
in the Mid-American Conference in scoring, and she scored in double figures
in a team-high 17 games during the 2003-04 season. Meunier set career
highs in seven statistical categories during the year, and she posted her first
career double-double with 13 points and a career-high 10 rebounds at Kent
State on February 11. In 2004-05, Meunier is currently averaging a team-high
Miscellaneous Statistics
Largest halftime lead: ........................................................................................................................................................... 14 points (Buffalo 30, East Carolina 16, January 2, 2005)
Largest halftime deficit: ................................................................................................................................................ 36 points (Connecticut 51, Buffalo 15, November 19, 2004)
Largest halftime lead surrendered to lose:
......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... n/a
Largest halftime deficit overcome to win:
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... n/a
Largest lead at any time: ................................................................................................................... 29 points (Buffalo 74, Miami (OH) 45, 4:16 second half, January 12, 2005)
Largest deficit at any time: .....................................................................................................
69 points (Connecticut 107, Buffalo 38, 1:08 second half, November 19, 2004)
Largest lead surrendered to lose: .................................................................................................
7 points (three occasions in the first half vs. Bucknell, December 7, 2004)
Largest deficit overcome to win: ............................................................................................................... 6 points (two occasions, first half vs. East Carolina, January 2, 2005)
Largest margin of victory: .................................................................................................................................................. 19 points (Buffalo 80, Miami (OH) 61, January 12, 2005)
Largest margin of defeat: ..........................................................................................................................................
67 points (Connecticut 107, Buffalo 40, November 19, 2004)
Most points scored in a half: ............................................................................. 45 (second half vs. Miami (OH), January 12, 2005; second half vs. Ohio, January 29, 2005)
Fewest points scored in a half: .....................................................................................................................................................
15 (first half vs. Connecticut, November 19, 2004)
Most points allowed in a half: ................................................................................................................................................ 56 (second half vs. Connecticut, November 19, 2004)
Fewest points allowed in a half: .........................................................................................................................................................
16 (first half vs. East Carolina, January 2, 2005)
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