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Quick notice: there is no much turnover and unproven D1 talent on this season's Buffalo roster it was hard to get hard data on the team, but nonetheless, enjoy!
Notable national rankings via KenPom:
Entering his fourth season replacing current Alabama coach Nate Oats, Jim Whitesell’s Buffalo teams play fast, hit the offensive glass (top-20 finishes in tempo and offensive rebounding rate in every season) and defend the perimeter well (top-75 in opponent 3p% and 3pa% in every season).
This season, the all-time great trio of Jeenathan Williams (7th in career points), Ronaldo Segu (6th in career assists) and Josh Mballa (5th in career rebounds, 10th in blocks) have graduated, facing Whitesell with his first rebuilding season.
Amongst the four returning players, none started last season and only two players (Curtis Jones and Laquill Hardnett) were regular rotation pieces. All in all, only 7% of last year’s scoring returns.
With all of their starters from last season either graduated or transferred, the Bulls’ success is mostly in the hands of talent with little D1 experience.
Against Colgate, a team that plays with two bigs, Buffalo played all 32 of their minutes with either 6’9 200 Smith or 6’8 205 Hardnett at the 5 and 6’6 210 Isaiah Adams at the 4, leaving the Bulls with a very lean lineup.
However, against a smaller JMU, Buffalo oddly went a bit bigger, playing 6’11 251 freshman big Isaac Jack for twelve minutes in total and sharing the court with 6’7 230 freshman forward Zaakir Williamson for seven minutes.
All in all, expect fast-paced squad mostly made up with unproven guards and a lot of pick and roll offense. While I like the idea of scheduling Buffalo regularly, this is arguably the worst Buffalo squad in a decade.
Buffalo: 1-1
Kenpom Rating: 207
Previous games: Kenpom Rating: 207
- 11/7 v Colgate: W 88-87
- Zid Powell, 24 points, 5 assists, 3 steals, 7-12 from the line
- Curtis Jones, 15 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists
- 11/12 v James Madison: L 62-97
- Curtis Jones, 13 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals
- Zid Powell, 8 points, 2 assists, 4 steals
Notable national rankings via KenPom:
- 2nd in overall tempo
- 24.8% offensive turnover rate, 294th lowest in nation
- 18.3% offensive rebounding rate, 305th in the nation
- 23.3 3p%, 291st in nation
- 24.8% defensive turnover rate, 44th best in the nation
- 59.5% opponent 2p%, 295th in nation
Entering his fourth season replacing current Alabama coach Nate Oats, Jim Whitesell’s Buffalo teams play fast, hit the offensive glass (top-20 finishes in tempo and offensive rebounding rate in every season) and defend the perimeter well (top-75 in opponent 3p% and 3pa% in every season).
This season, the all-time great trio of Jeenathan Williams (7th in career points), Ronaldo Segu (6th in career assists) and Josh Mballa (5th in career rebounds, 10th in blocks) have graduated, facing Whitesell with his first rebuilding season.
Amongst the four returning players, none started last season and only two players (Curtis Jones and Laquill Hardnett) were regular rotation pieces. All in all, only 7% of last year’s scoring returns.
A Look at the Roster
With all of their starters from last season either graduated or transferred, the Bulls’ success is mostly in the hands of talent with little D1 experience.
Against Colgate, a team that plays with two bigs, Buffalo played all 32 of their minutes with either 6’9 200 Smith or 6’8 205 Hardnett at the 5 and 6’6 210 Isaiah Adams at the 4, leaving the Bulls with a very lean lineup.
However, against a smaller JMU, Buffalo oddly went a bit bigger, playing 6’11 251 freshman big Isaac Jack for twelve minutes in total and sharing the court with 6’7 230 freshman forward Zaakir Williamson for seven minutes.
All in all, expect fast-paced squad mostly made up with unproven guards and a lot of pick and roll offense. While I like the idea of scheduling Buffalo regularly, this is arguably the worst Buffalo squad in a decade.
