The Buffalo State men’s basketball team opened its SUNYAC season last weekend with a pair of victories, and it did so in a way unlike how the team won its first three games.
The team’s first three victories came in blowout fashion, outscoring its opponents 324-217. While the trend of winning continued, the blowouts were replaced by a pair of close, hard-fought wins.
The Bengals defeated Oneonta, 80-76, on Friday at Alumni Field House and followed it up with a 89-83 win over New Paltz on Saturday at the Hawk Center to jump out to a 2-0 conference record. They’re 5-0 overall.
“Coach always says that these are good character wins,” forward Justin Mitchell said. “When the games are close it really builds you as a team.”
Head coach Fajri Ansari said close games will help the team down the line.
“To compete in the playoffs, you’re going to have to be able to perform well against teams like that in close games,” he said.
Ranked No. 16 nationally, the Bengals entered the weekend favored in both of their games.
“We had two tough games,” Ansari said. “Expectations aren’t too important to us. We’re just happy to get the win. The wins showed me that the team had character and has the ability to win close games.”
The game against Oneonta featured 11 lead changes, and neither team ever trailed by more than six points. The Bengals took the lead 62-59 on leading scorer Jake Simmons’ 3-pointer with 10:19 left, and they would never trail thereafter.
Buffalo State extended its lead to 75-69 with 4:15 to go, but the Red Dragons pulled to within one point at 77-76 in the final 29 seconds. The Bengals prevailed, however, making three of four free throws to preserve the win.
“It’s a win in a close game, and we were able to execute,” Ansari noted. “A year ago on that same trip we would have lost that game.”
Simmons went 9 of 14 from the field, including 5 of 7 from 3-point range. He finished with a team-high 27 points and also added five rebounds and four steals. Mitchell had 17 points to go with five steals. Ahmed Nagaya contributed 12 rebounds.
The Bengals showed their resilient side in the win over New Paltz. The Hawks jumped out to a 14-7 lead, much to the pleasure of the fans at the Hawk Center. The Bengals would storm back, however, going on a 13-0 tear and tying the game going into the half.
“That 13-0 run showed that we can turn it on at any time we want, but the thing is turning it on at the beginning of the game and keeping it on,” Simmons said. “Sometimes we turn it on just because we feel like we can, then we go back into ‘just playing basketball’ mode. We have to be resilient the whole game, not just when we’re down.”
The Hawks scored the first points of the second half but Buffalo State would answer quickly. They built their lead to 11 with just over two minutes to play and held on for the win.
Mitchell led the Bengals with 23 points and seven rebounds. Simmons added 21 points and Ahmed Nagaya had 15 points to go with 14 rebounds. Norman Simmons chipped in nine points, seven rebounds and five assists. Buffalo State forced 21 turnovers and had just 14 of their own.
The Bengals will host Cortland at 8 p.m. Friday and Oswego at 4 p.m. on Saturday in the Sports Arena.
“Cortland is playing good this year,” Jake Simmons said. “We prepare for everything and everybody, so I have confidence in us. We’re home, and the road victories were good for our character and built us up mentally.”
Mitchell was straightforward in the team’s intentions for Oswego, which finished first in the conference last season.
“Oswego beat us last year,” he said. “We have to beat Oswego. That’s all we want to do.”
Tom Gallagher can be reached by email at gallagher.record@live.com.