Buffalo State will host the Women's Basketball SUNYAC Final Four this Friday and Saturday for the first time since 1992.
Friday, February 24 – Semifinals
#3 Oneonta vs. #2 New Paltz – 6:00 p.m.
#5 Cortland vs. #1 Buffalo State – 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 25 – Championship
Winners of Semifinals – 4:00 p.m.
Buffalo State set a school record with 23 regular season wins and is one win shy of equaling the school standard for total wins in a season. The Bengals are currently riding a 12-game winning streak and advanced through the quarterfinals with a 64-56 win over Fredonia behind 21 points and 10 rebounds from Bianca Smiley (Amherst/Sweet Home).
Buffalo State has won a league-best nine SUNYAC Championships, but has not captured a title since 2002, the longest drought in school history. The Bengals victory on Tuesday marked their first playoff win since 2003.
Buffalo State ranks second in the SUNYAC in scoring offense (67.9 ppg) and defense (53.1 ppg). Sophomore Smiley is the fifth leading scorer in the league (14.2 ppg) and is second in rebounding (8.9 rpg). A pair of 1,000-point scorers bolster the Bengals' attack, as junior Staci McElroy (Saratoga Springs/Saratoga Springs) leads the league as an 82-percent free-throw shooter and ranks in the top-10 in scoring (11.9 ppg). Senior Barb Kiliszek(Depew/Lancaster) also averages scoring in double-digits, and leads the league with 103 steals and third with 104 assists.
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