Big Plays Down the Stretch By Nick Perkins Helps Give Buffalo MAC Championship and NCAA Berth

The Toledo Rockets entered the MAC championship without the services of their best player, Tre’Shaun Fletcher, while the Buffalo Bulls looked like a steamroller coming into the game.

As usually happens when teams play 3 games in 3 days, defense was the story. With the stakes so high, both teams brought the effort. The tired legs can’t always put the ball in the basket.

Toledo hung around for the entire first half, but then cooled a bit at the end. Buffalo took a 34-29 lead into the intermission. Buffalo shot 48% from the floor at that point, while the Rockets shot 39%.

Willie Jackson and Jaelan Sanford had 8 apiece for the Rockets while Wes Clark had 11 for the Bulls. A very telling half time stat, 9 different Bulls managed to score.

Toledo hung around for most of the second half and even tied it at 63 with 5 minutes and change left.

The tired legs of the Rockets started to show, as they missed open shots, and Nick Perkins took over, first from three and then up close, and the Bulls ended up winning 76-66.

All the team stats were relatively even, with the exception of field goal percentage. The Buffalo depth proved to be the key.

Sanford led the Rockets with 20, while Wes Clark led the Bulls with 26.