Griffs play host with 28-8 series edge
t's a rivalry of the strangest manner. The University at Buffalo and Canisius College share a county and not much else.
Canisius is a small school with a decent basketball history and tends to walk with a swagger. UB is nearly eight times the size of Canisius, has little tradition and is still learning how to properly strut.
And the Golden Griffins, no matter what their record is, get really excited to play UB. Last year, it was the season opener, a 60-58 Canisius win, and the Bulls went on to lose their next two games. A week later, the Griffs lost to Liberty, and two days after that they fell to Division II Alaska Anchorage. Bizarre, bizarre, bizarre.
UB (5-2) and Canisius (1-4) meet for the 37th time at 8:45 tonight in the Koessler Center. The UB and Canisius women's teams play at 6:30. Both games are on Radio 1340 AM, with the men also on 710 AM.
About 400 tickets remain for this rivalry that's more one-sided than the "Rush Limbaugh Show."
The Griffs own a 28-8 edge in the series and have won six of eight. The Griffs are 7-2 against the Bulls during coach Mike MacDonald's tenure.
The last time Buffalo earned a road victory against the Griffs was 83 years ago with a 22-12 victory in Elmwood Music Hall on March 14, 1921. The series began in 1912 with Canisius winning by 47 at Canisius College Court. The Griffs have pretty much cruised since then.
"It has a little more meaning and you have bragging rights around Buffalo," said Canisius junior guard Kevin Downey. "You have to represent yourself well. Every day you open the paper and you hear about them and they hear about us. It's the same thing with Niagara. We always want to know how they're doing."
Over the summer, they play pickup together. UB's Mark Bortz and Turner Battle and Canisius' Darnell Wilson and Jon Popofski were teammates last summer at the Empire State Games. "It makes it that much sweeter to play against people you know and beat them," Bortz said.
Since 1999-2000, when Canisius won by 32 in the Koessler, the scores haven't been as lopsided. They played twice in 2000-01 with the Griffs sweeping both games - winning the first, 80-78, in overtime and the second, 62-60. UB's last win was 58-56 in 2001 in Alumni Arena on a Clem Smith dunk. Last season, the Bulls missed 14 free throws and suffered 20 turnovers and lost despite leading most of the game.
"We haven't played well enough to beat them," said UB coach Reggie Witherspoon. "Last year it was early, and it was before we did anything right. The year before, Brian Dux hurt us. We're just going to have to play better to beat them."
With loads of experience and a deep bench, the Bulls come in heavily favored, not that it matters.
"We've been able to make the little plays in the past against them," said Canisius senior guard Dewitt Doss. "We play against each other in the summer and kind of feel each other out, and during the season it naturally gets a little more intense because we're so close together."
UB's dress rehearsal was a 95-92 double-overtime win over Niagara last Saturday, while Canisius lost at Eastern Michigan, 86-72, on the same night. UB has superior experience, a better starting five, a sometimes efficient offense. The Griffs will counter with a superior home-court advantage - they've won the last 20 home games against the Bulls and have never lost to UB in the Koessler Center (8-0) - and a problematic style of play.
The Griffs' three-guard offense of Downey, Doss and sophomore Chuck Harris contributed 43 points against Eastern Michigan but had only seven assists and 11 of the team's 22 turnovers.
"We have to execute our offense and stop making stupid plays," Downey said.
But will it be enough?
"Pick your poison," MacDonald said. "Do you worry about the perimeter guys in Battle and (Calvin) Cage, (Roderick) Middleton and (Daniel) Gilbert? Or do you worry about the inside guys of Bortz and (Yassin) Idbihi? You have to try and figure which one will you try and take away, and I don't know if there's a right answer."
It might be easier to take away the guards because Canisius is not equipped to handle Bortz and Idbihi. Bortz is making the most of his senior year while averaging a team-high 15.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks, all off the bench. He's coming off a career-best performance against Niagara, scoring 32 points.
Inside, Canisius has 6-8 freshman Rigoberto Sargeant, who has potential but has yet to face a tandem the caliber of Bortz and Idbihi. Then again, trivial matters such as lack of size never seemed to bother Canisius in the past.
"They're really riding a wave right now," MacDonald said. "Now it's up to us to try and break that wave."
t's a rivalry of the strangest manner. The University at Buffalo and Canisius College share a county and not much else.
Canisius is a small school with a decent basketball history and tends to walk with a swagger. UB is nearly eight times the size of Canisius, has little tradition and is still learning how to properly strut.
And the Golden Griffins, no matter what their record is, get really excited to play UB. Last year, it was the season opener, a 60-58 Canisius win, and the Bulls went on to lose their next two games. A week later, the Griffs lost to Liberty, and two days after that they fell to Division II Alaska Anchorage. Bizarre, bizarre, bizarre.
UB (5-2) and Canisius (1-4) meet for the 37th time at 8:45 tonight in the Koessler Center. The UB and Canisius women's teams play at 6:30. Both games are on Radio 1340 AM, with the men also on 710 AM.
About 400 tickets remain for this rivalry that's more one-sided than the "Rush Limbaugh Show."
The Griffs own a 28-8 edge in the series and have won six of eight. The Griffs are 7-2 against the Bulls during coach Mike MacDonald's tenure.
The last time Buffalo earned a road victory against the Griffs was 83 years ago with a 22-12 victory in Elmwood Music Hall on March 14, 1921. The series began in 1912 with Canisius winning by 47 at Canisius College Court. The Griffs have pretty much cruised since then.
"It has a little more meaning and you have bragging rights around Buffalo," said Canisius junior guard Kevin Downey. "You have to represent yourself well. Every day you open the paper and you hear about them and they hear about us. It's the same thing with Niagara. We always want to know how they're doing."
Over the summer, they play pickup together. UB's Mark Bortz and Turner Battle and Canisius' Darnell Wilson and Jon Popofski were teammates last summer at the Empire State Games. "It makes it that much sweeter to play against people you know and beat them," Bortz said.
Since 1999-2000, when Canisius won by 32 in the Koessler, the scores haven't been as lopsided. They played twice in 2000-01 with the Griffs sweeping both games - winning the first, 80-78, in overtime and the second, 62-60. UB's last win was 58-56 in 2001 in Alumni Arena on a Clem Smith dunk. Last season, the Bulls missed 14 free throws and suffered 20 turnovers and lost despite leading most of the game.
"We haven't played well enough to beat them," said UB coach Reggie Witherspoon. "Last year it was early, and it was before we did anything right. The year before, Brian Dux hurt us. We're just going to have to play better to beat them."
With loads of experience and a deep bench, the Bulls come in heavily favored, not that it matters.
"We've been able to make the little plays in the past against them," said Canisius senior guard Dewitt Doss. "We play against each other in the summer and kind of feel each other out, and during the season it naturally gets a little more intense because we're so close together."
UB's dress rehearsal was a 95-92 double-overtime win over Niagara last Saturday, while Canisius lost at Eastern Michigan, 86-72, on the same night. UB has superior experience, a better starting five, a sometimes efficient offense. The Griffs will counter with a superior home-court advantage - they've won the last 20 home games against the Bulls and have never lost to UB in the Koessler Center (8-0) - and a problematic style of play.
The Griffs' three-guard offense of Downey, Doss and sophomore Chuck Harris contributed 43 points against Eastern Michigan but had only seven assists and 11 of the team's 22 turnovers.
"We have to execute our offense and stop making stupid plays," Downey said.
But will it be enough?
"Pick your poison," MacDonald said. "Do you worry about the perimeter guys in Battle and (Calvin) Cage, (Roderick) Middleton and (Daniel) Gilbert? Or do you worry about the inside guys of Bortz and (Yassin) Idbihi? You have to try and figure which one will you try and take away, and I don't know if there's a right answer."
It might be easier to take away the guards because Canisius is not equipped to handle Bortz and Idbihi. Bortz is making the most of his senior year while averaging a team-high 15.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks, all off the bench. He's coming off a career-best performance against Niagara, scoring 32 points.
Inside, Canisius has 6-8 freshman Rigoberto Sargeant, who has potential but has yet to face a tandem the caliber of Bortz and Idbihi. Then again, trivial matters such as lack of size never seemed to bother Canisius in the past.
"They're really riding a wave right now," MacDonald said. "Now it's up to us to try and break that wave."
