BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Western Michigan men's basketball team improved to 2-0 in Mid-American Conference play on Saturday afternoon as it topped Buffalo, 82-77, at UB's Alumni Arena. With the victory, the Broncos improved to 2-0 in MAC play for the first time since the 2017-18 campaign. The win was also WMU's first road win at UB since 2010 and snapped a 10-game skid against the Bulls.

Seth Hubbard paced the Broncos (5-9, 2-0 MAC) in scoring for the fifth game in a row as he notched 19 points, while B. Artis White was right behind with 17 points. Anthony Crump posted his first double-double for the Brown and Gold, as he tallied 10 points and 10 rebounds. WMU totaled 22 assists on its 32 field goals, with White leading the team with six helpers and Jefferson De La Cruz Monegro and JaVaughn Hannah collecting four assists apiece.
 
The two teams traded the lead back and forth for much of the opening period until a 9-2 stretch put the Bulls (2-12, 1-1) in front, 27-20, with 7:22 to go in the half. Western Michigan responded with 12 consecutive points, including six from Crump, to take a 32-27 advantage with under a minute to go. During the run, WMU held Buffalo without a point for nearly seven minutes. After a UB bucket ended the drought, Hubbard got the margin to five once again with a driving layup, but a buzzer-beating three-pointer closed the gap to 34-32 in favor of the Broncos at halftime.
 
The Bulls put together an 11-3 stretch in the early stages of the second half to move back in front, 47-43. Western Michigan countered with a 6-1 spurt on three-pointers from White and Hubbard to briefly regain a 49-48 edge. UB answered with a hoop on its end, but the Broncos came right back down and Javonte Brown found a cutting Crump for a jam which put the visitors back on top, 51-50. Buffalo once again looked to respond on the other end, but a Brown rejection kept the lead in tact, and WMU did not surrender the advantage for the remainder of the contest.
 
Crump's dunk was the start of a 9-0 Western Michigan run which increased its advantage to 58-50. At 62-56, a Hannah triple followed by a Brown layup pushed the Broncos into their largest lead of the contest, 67-56.
 
The Bulls charged hard in the final moments, including a pair of three-pointers in the last minute to close to within three, 78-75. On the ensuing possession, White hit a clutch jumper to push the margin to five, and following a Buffalo basket, the redshirt junior nailed two free throws in the final seconds to seal the victory.   
 
The Broncos shot 48.5 percent (32-of-66) for the contest and made 41.7 percent of its three-pointers (10-of-24). Buffalo connected on 29-of-69 (42.0 percent) from the field, and was limited to seven triples on 22 tries (31.8 percent). WMU won the rebounding battle for the fifth game in a row, as it edged the Bulls on the glass, 40-39.
 
Western Michigan returns to University Arena for a pair of home games next week, beginning on Tuesday, Jan. 9, as it hosts NIU at 7 pm. For tickets to any home WMU men's basketball game this season, visit wmubroncos.com/tickets.