Deonte Mack Director of Sports Performance | Eastern Michigan Athletics Website
Deonte Mack Director of Sports Performance | Eastern Michigan Athletics Website
The Eastern Michigan University Eagles faced a challenging game against the University at Buffalo Bulls, resulting in a 77-55 defeat on January 15 at the George Gervin GameAbove Center in Ypsilanti. Despite holding the lead multiple times, the Eagles (1-14, 0-5 Mid-American Conference) could not withstand a strong performance by the Bulls (14-2, 3-2 MAC), who surged ahead with a decisive run in the third quarter.
Sisi Eleko was a standout player for Eastern Michigan, achieving her ninth double-double of the season. "Sisi Eleko recorded her ninth double-double of the season and joined three of her teammates in scoring two three-pointers," as reported by EMUEagles.com. The Eagles were initially competitive, with Olivia Westphal and Brooklyn Thrash contributing early points. However, after trailing 20-13 in the first quarter, they struggled to keep pace with Buffalo's scoring runs.
In the second quarter, both teams exchanged scores rapidly, but Buffalo maintained an edge leading into halftime with a score of 38-30. The third quarter saw Buffalo extend their lead significantly through a 12-0 run. Despite efforts from Eleko and Mackenzie Amalia, who contributed points from free throws and beyond the arc, Eastern couldn't close the gap.
Eastern Michigan managed to outscore Buffalo in the fourth quarter but ultimately fell short of overcoming their deficit. Notably, Kyndal Lewis achieved personal milestones during this match by hitting multiple three-pointers for the first time in her career.
Key players included Chellia Watson from Buffalo and Sisi Eleko from Eastern Michigan; both are top scorers in their conference. Watson ended with 21 points while Eleko scored 16 points along with 11 rebounds and five assists.
Despite this loss affecting their overall record negatively to 1-14 and extending their winless streak within conference play to five games, certain individual performances stood out positively for Eastern Michigan.
Looking ahead, Eastern will face Central Michigan University on January 18 at McGuirk Arena in Mount Pleasant.
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