BUFFALO, NY – Brittnee Perry (Buffalo, NY/Hutch Tech) scored a career-high 22 points and pulled down nine rebounds, but Buffalo State (8-8, 5-4 SUNYAC) could not overcome Oneonta (9-5, 4-3 SUNYAC) in the final minute and fell 68-63 in a SUNYAC matchup on Friday night at Buffalo State Sports Arena.
Perry led the way offensively for the Bengals and also added a career-high five steals. Olivia Luciani (Syracuse, NY/East Syracuse-Minoa) added 13 points, including a 3-pointer that brought Buffalo State to within two points of the Red Dragons with 51 seconds to play. Hillary Kollar (Johnstown, NY/Johnstown) chipped in nine points and five rebounds, while Clarisa Matias (Buffalo, NY/Holy Angels) added seven points.
Buffalo State struggled to get things going in the first half, shooting just 25 percent (8-of-32) from the floor. Oneonta went on an 8-0 run at 16:22, going up 14-7. With 8:09 left to play in the first half, a free throw gave the Red Dragons a nine point lead, their largest of the game. The Bengals, however, quickly responded with a 9-0 run led by seven points from Kollar and tied things at 24 with 1:44 remaining. Two quick shots from behind the arc in the final minute, gave Oneonta a 30-24 lead heading into halftime.
The Red Dragons pushed their lead out to 11, 35-24, in the opening minutes of the second half. Despite being down by double digits for the majority of the half, the Bengals continued shooting and found themselves on a 9-0 run in the final minutes of the game. Capping off the run, a 3-pointer from Luciani cut Oneonta's lead to just two points with 51 seconds on the clock. Unfortunately, the Red Dragons hit all six of their free throws down the stretch and managed to hold on for a five point win, 68-63.
The Bengals finished the game shooting 33.3 percent from the floor, a strong 50 percent (7-of-14) from long range and 66.7 percent from the free throw line. Oneonta tallied a 40-35 advantage in rebounds and despite 21 turnovers finished the night shooting 46 percent from the floor.
Buffalo State returns to action at home again Saturday for another SUNYAC matchup at 4 p.m. against New Paltz.
