University at Buffalo freshman forward Javon McCrea has been named one of the best freshmen in the nation by Basketball Prospectus. McCrea ranks 15th on a list of the top 25 freshmen so far this season.
The 6-6 forward is averaging 9.2 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. He also has 19 steals and 26 blocked shots. He is shooting 70.8 percent from the field to lead the MAC and rank second in the nation. He also ranks fourth in the conference in blocked shots and fifth in rebounding.
McCrea has three double-doubles on the season. The Newark, NY native tallied 14 points and 10 rebounds in his debut against Navy to become the first UB player to record a double-double in the first game of his career since Rasaun Young had 15 points and 11 rebounds against Daemen on Nov. 26, 1993.
McCrea is the only freshman from the Mid-American Conference to appear on the list.
While the Bills have once again been long gone from the NFL playoff picture, Buffalo was very well represented this weekend in Wild Card postseason action.
The biggest story, of course, is former Niagara Falls High School and University at Buffalo running back James Starks. The sixth-round rookie was the difference for the Green Bay Packers in their 21-16 victory over Philadelphia, rushing for a game-high 123 yards on 23 carries. The rushing total was also a Green Bay rookie postseason record.
“He (Starks) had a great night tonight,” Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. ” The offensive line did a great job.”
Despite missing his senior season at UB with a shoulder injury, Starks still set a school career rushing record with 3,140 yards to go with 40 total touchdowns. Before that he was a former All-Western New York quarterback at Niagara Falls, where he threw for over 1,000 yards and ran for 600 more in 2005.
Huge Impact From Buffalo Ties In Wild Card Weekend – continue reading…
The University at Buffalo men’s basketball team shot a season-high 60 percent from the field to dismantle Green Bay, 78-64, at Alumni Arena on Saturday afternoon. It was Reggie Witherspoon’s 150th win as head coach of the UB Bulls.
The Bulls’ starting backcourt of Byron Mulkey and Zach Filzen each scored 21 points to help the Bulls improve to 6-3 on the season and 4-0 at home. Filzen tied a career high with five three-pointers.
Freshman Javon McCrea registered the third double-double of his young career with 13 points and 12 rebounds. He added a career-best five blocked shots.
UB Hoops Soar Past Green Bay, 78-64 – continue reading…
Fresh off a second place finish at the Penn State Open Sunday, junior Kevin Smith was named the Mid American Conference wrestler of the week for the week of November 29 to December 5, the Mid-American Conference announced from its offices in Cleveland this morning. The award is the Mexico, NY native’s second in his career and second in a month’s time.
Smith had a terrific outing Sunday, starting the day with four straight wins before falling in the championship match at 133 pounds at the Penn State Open. The Exercise Science major took down wrestlers from Navy, Bloomsburg, Maryland and North Carolina en route to his runner-up finish. Smith’s third win of the day gave him 70 for his career and he now has 13 wins of the season.
UB’s Kevin Smith Named MAC Wrestler of Week – continue reading…
After scoring two goals and anchoring the Buffalo defense for the entire season, sophomore Shannon Algoe was honored with a spot on the Mid American Conference’s All Academic Team this afternoon. The award, awarded through a voting process conducted by faculty athletic representatives from the conference schools, recognizes excellence in the classroom and performance on the field.
Algoe, a business management major from Lockport, NY, transferred to Buffalo from the University of Connecticut. Her presence was felt immediately on the squad and she ultimately started every game, one of only two players to do so this season. Playing mainly as the team’s last line of defense, Algoe managed to pitch in two goals for the season, second-best on the team.
UB’s Shannon Algoe Earns MAC All Academic Honors – continue reading…
Preseason All-MAC selection Kourtney Brown has been named MAC East Player of the Week, the Mid-American Conference Office announced on Monday afternoon. It is the first time this season that Brown has won the honor and the eighth time in her career.
Brown finished with 25.0 points and 14.3 rebounds during UB’s three games this past week. Brown had a career-high 34 points against Cleveland State and then finished with a season-best 18 rebounds against Temple. She also added 12 blocks over the three games, breaking UB’s all-time career record blocked shots. Brown had nine straight double-doubles, before finishing with 24 points and nine rebounds in UB’s win over Bucknell.
Kourtney Brown Named MAC East Player Of The Week – continue reading…
University at Buffalo men’s basketball head coach Reggie Witherspoon has announced the signing of Xavier Ford to a National Letter of Intent. The 6-8, 200-lb. forward will join the Bulls beginning in the 2011-12 season.
Ford hails from Colorado Springs, CO where he played for head coach Jim Masterson at Harrison High School. He averaged 22 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots per game last season as a junior en route to earning honorable mention All-State honors. He is also a two-time All-League selection.
Ford also played for the AAU program Colorado Chaos and was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Desert Invitational in Phoenix.
“Xavier is a talented kid who is very versatile both offensively and defensively,” Witherspoon said. “He has proven to be a hard worker and someone we are excited to have join our program.”
University at Buffalo head men’s basketball coach Reggie Witherspoon, serving as an assistant coach for Team USA, is bringing a gold medal home to Western New York.
Quincy Miller hit a three-pointer with 25 seconds left to help the USA beat Brazil 81-78 and take the gold medal at the 2010 FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship at Bill Greehey Arena. This is the fifth gold medal for the United States, who also won in 1990, 1994, 1998 and 2006. For Brazil, this is their first silver medal after three bronze medals (1990, 1998 and 2006).
“I am really happy for the kids,” said Witherspoon. “I know that for the most part, it’s as hard as they’ve ever worked at in basketball. It’s something that they love. You’d like to have won it in grand fashion, like we won the other games, but the fact that they had to overcome some adversity probably makes it sweeter. Everything didn’t go well, but they overcame the adversity of the training camp. It’s really good to see them win the gold medal. I think they have a greater appreciation of how it works now.”
Witherspoon Brings Gold Medal Back To WNY – continue reading…
2008 University at Buffalo graduate, and former wrestling team captain, Jeff Parker succumbed to his battle with cancer on Saturday evening, surrounded by his immediate family.
In his senior year, Parker posted 27 wins and was awarded the “Ideal Bull” Award and earned a spot on the Academic All-MAC wrestling team. A three-year member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Parker earned the SUNY Chancellor award in 2008 for his combination of academic and athletic prowess. He was last on UB’s campus in late January, when the Division of Athletics hosted its first “Takedown Cancer” event in his honor, raising over $35,000 for cancer research.
UB Mourns The Loss Of Former Wrestler – continue reading…
Former University at Buffalo defensive lineman Bruno Lapointe was selected by the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League on Sunday, May 2, 2010. LaPointe was selected in the fifth round as the 38th overall pick of the 2010 CFL draft.
A native of Lennoxville, Quebec, LaPointe played three seasons with the Bulls from 2007 to 2009, competing in 27 games. In his career, he compiled 36 total tackles, including 19 solo tackles, 17 assisted tackles and seven tackles for losses. He also added a sack and a pass breakup to his career totals.
LaPointe becomes the fourth Bulls’ player from the 2009 roster to join a professional football roster in the past two weeks including James Starks (Green Bay Packers), Naaman Roosevelt (Buffalo Bills) and Mike Newton (Indianapolis Colts).
UB’s LaPointe Looks to Stick in Canadian League – continue reading…
The University at Buffalo softball team dropped a pair of games to Syracuse Wednesday, falling to the Orange 3-2 in game one and 8-0 in the night cap, bringing their record to 8-18 overall.
In game one of the afternoon, Buffalo scored first, putting up two runs in the top of third inning as Dominique Carcone, Kristin Waldron and Alyssa Ward all singled. The Bulls were able to capitalize on a pair of Syracuse errors and an RBI from Ward to earn the runs. Syracuse bounced back and bettered the Bulls’ score, earning three runs of their own in the bottom of the fourth. The Bulls had a chance to tie it up in the top of the seventh with a double from Kristen Gallipani but the Syracuse defense stranded the batter and ended the game.
Bulls Swept by Syracuse in Softball – continue reading…
NIAGARA FALLS TO LA SALLE
The Niagara baseball team (4-16) dropped the final game of the Baseball Bash on Sunday, losing 14-7 at La Salle. Freshman Ryan McCauley had a pair of hits, inclduing his second career home run, to go along with three RBIs.
Niagara fell behind 7-1 after two innings before moutning a charge. The Purple Eagles cut the lead to 9-7 in the sixth inning, but the Explorers scored the games final five runs for the win.
“I thought our team played with a ton of heart this weekend,” Niagara head coach Rob McCoy said. “The scoreboard has not been a reflection of our effort and intensity lately.”
Weekend College Baseball Recap – continue reading…
The University at Buffalo men’s basketball team was unable to overcome an early 18-point deficit as a furious second half rally came up short as the Bulls fell to Miami 73-59 in their Mid-American Conference quarterfinal game at the Quicken Loans Arena.
The Bulls scored the first bucket of the game, but the RedHawks responded with a 17-0 run, taking an early 14-point lead. UB continued to struggle from the floor in the opening half as the Bulls hit just four of their first 14 shots.
UB season ends with MAC Tourney loss to Miami – continue reading…
Former University of Buffalo running back James Starks could soon go from being the popular local boy to sleeping with enemy, literally.
Starks has announced that the New England Patriots contacted him and the former Niagara Falls high school star will meet individually with the Patriots before the NFL draft, according to the All Access Football website.
Starks, who missed all of 2009 with a labral tear in his shoulder, was impressive at the NFL Combine in February. He was seven among all running backs with a 4.5/40 time. He also finished fifth with a 6.89 time in the three cone drill.
James Starks to work out for Patriots – continue reading…
The University at Buffalo men’s basketball team dropped its regular season finale to Miami (OH), 73-62 on Thursday evening at Millet Hall. Sophomore Mitchell Watt (Goodyear, AZ/Desert Edge) scored a career-high 17 points in the Bulls’ fall.
Mitchell Watt led the Bulls with a career-high 17 points and tying a career-high six rebounds. Senior Calvin Betts (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta) pulled in 12 boards. Pierce converted seven straight free throws in the second half, scoring 16 points while tying Watt with six rebounds.
The Bulls’ journey in the 2010 MAC Tournament will be decided in the outcome of Friday’s Kent State-Akron contest at Akron. If Akron wins, the Bulls will receive a first-round bye as the fourth seed. If Kent State wins, the Bulls will enter as the fifth seed and will host Toledo on Sunday, March 7 at 2:00 pm.
The University at Buffalo men’s basketball team couldn’t overcome a fast start by Akron and fell to the division-leading Zips, 77-67, at Rhodes Arena on Wednesday night. Akron jumped out to a 24-4 lead and never looked back, snapping the Bulls’ five game winning streak.
Buffalo (16-10, 8-6 MAC) stumbled out of the gate hitting only two of its first 17 shots. The Bulls shot 9-of-32 for the half. Conversely, Akron (21-8, 11-3 MAC) shot 50 percent for the half and led 39-23 at the break.
The Bulls managed to cut the Akron lead to 12 points on a couple occasions in the second half, but failed to get the lead to single digits.
Bulls Win Streak Snapped By Akron – continue reading…
The regular season is coming to a close and there are a lot of teams across the country still fighting for an at large bid to the NCAA tournament. Some of these teams are mid-majors, some are from power conferences, and some from conferences in between the two (A-10, the Valley, and Mountain West).
Sadly, there are no teams for the MAC that will make the NCAA tournament without winning it all in Cleveland, but you can’t completely criticize this conference.
Fans who want the best thing possible for UB and the MAC often criticize because it only sends one team to the dance and really haven’t had a legit shot at sending two in at least five years. We want to always have 20 win years and to be annually in the hunt to make a splash when it actually counts. Then we holler and scream when our mediocrity does match up to schools who are able to come through some years, such as Cleveland State, Southern Illinois, George Mason, etc.
The MAC and the RPI – continue reading…
The University at Buffalo wrestling team recorded a third place-finish at the 41st annual New York State Intercollegiate Wrestling Championships held Sunday at Newman Arena on the campus of Cornell University. The reigning champion Bulls scored 149.5 points behind Army (158) and sixth nationally-ranked host Cornell (194). Sophomore John-Martin Cannon captured the 165-pound crown by upsetting 16th nationally-ranked Justin Kerber of Cornell, 3-1 in overtime.
Cannon captured the Bulls’ lone individual crown of the championships at 165. On Saturday, Cannon scored a fall followed by a major decision to reach the semifinals. In the semifinals, the sophomore posted a 6-4 decision over Matt Kaylor of Binghamton in the second overtime period to reach the championships. After finishing in third place last year, Cannon earned his first trip to the finals where he would record the biggest victory of his career, defeating 16th nationally-ranked Kerber of Cornell in the first overtime period, 3-1.
UB wrestling finishes third in NYS Championships – continue reading…
For the second straight Mid-American Conference road game, the University at Buffalo men’s basketball team ran into a red-hot shooting team, this time dropping a 99-77 decision to Ohio University in the Convocation Center before 10,689 fans.
Ohio (10-9) shot 52 percent for the game from the field and 50 percent (11-of-22) from beyond the arc. The Bulls lost despite hitting 13 three-point field goals, including a career-high six by senior point guard John Boyer, who led the Bulls with a career-best 20 points.
UB drops consecutive games for the first time this season – continue reading…
University at Buffalo head football coach Jeff Quinn has announced that Wyatt Cahill, a defensive end from Tempe, AZ, has signed a letter of intent with the Bulls and will enroll in January.
After sitting as a redshirt in his first season at Buffalo, Mack erupted on to the scene and wreaked havoc in opposing backfields all season long. The Fort Pierce, FL native recorded team highs in both sacks (with 4.5) and tackles for losses (14.5). Even when he couldn’t take down the ball carrier, he left his mark, hitting the quarterback eight times. He also excelled in coverage, with a team-high ten pass break ups. His 68 total tackles was third-most on the team.
Most valuable player honors to seniors Domonic Cook and Davonte Shannon and freshman Alex Neutz highlighted the University at Buffalo football team’s awards banquet held at the Millenium Hotel Sunday afternoon. The banquet recognized the top performers both on and off the field.
It must be something about Doyt Perry Stadium, because every time the Buffalo football team plays at Bowling Green the incredible seems to happen.
The University at Buffalo football team wrapped up its first week of spring practice on Tuesday afternoon. Spirits were high and a sense of excitement permeated through the air at UB Stadium .
UB Athletics was kind enough to make new head football coach Jeff Quinn available for an interview. Right now the coaching staff is busy getting ready for spring ball so I am very grateful for the time they have taken to answer these questions. 
