BUFFALO, N.Y.—Double-doubles by both Britt Perry (Buffalo/Hutch Tech) and Keyonte Edwards (Buffalo/O'Hara) drove host Buffalo State to a convincing 79-54 victory over Thiel today in the opening round of the Betty Abgott Invitational.
 
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Buffalo State – 79, Thiel - 54
LOCATION:  Sports Arena - Buffalo, N.Y.
RECORDS:  Buffalo State (2-0), Thiel (0-3)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Perry led the Bengals with 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Edwards was just one steal shy of a triple-double with 17 points, 11 boards and nine steals.  Edwards' nine steals tied a Buffalo State single-game record.
• Jordan Yastremski (Bath/Bath-Haverling) chipped in 14 points and six boards.
• Thiel led by as many as seven late in the first period, but the Bengals led 38-32 by the intermission and never looked back.
• The Bengals reached their largest lead at 27 early in the fourth quarter and backed off for the victory. 
• Buffalo State's aggressive defense forced 32 Tomcat turnovers, while the Bengals committed 17. 
• Thiel kept the game close early with the long-range shot, and outscored Buffalo State, 27-6 from 3-point range for the game.
• The Bengals pounded Thiel in the paint, however, owning a 56-37 rebounding advantage, and a 50-16 scoring edge inside.

 
FOR THE FOES

• Hannah Stoneman and Alivia Sidley led Thiel with 11 points each, and Erin DiFalco scored 10.

 
THE OPENING GAME

• Bluffton (1-0) outlasted John Carroll (1-1), 67-63, in the tourney's first game.
• John Carroll overcame a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit, thanks in large part to an 11-0 run and evened the score at 63-63 with 32 seconds remaining. 
• Macey Sheerer responded with a jumper at the other end for the Beavers, and Taylor Whitaker hit a pair of free throws to seal the win.
• Whitaker led Bluffton with 18 points, while Kaycee Rowe had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Sheerer netted 12.
• Katlyn Spahar led three John Carroll players scoring in double-figures with 22 points.  Kelsey Poplawski chipped in 12 points, Shmoo Pryor added 11.  Sarah Cairnie had seven points and grabbed a team-best 11 rebounds.

 
UP NEXT
Buffalo State will face Bluffton in tomorrow's championship game at 1 p.m.  John Carroll and Thiel will square off in the consolation game at 11 a.m.