Buffalo Bulls men's basketball

Buffalo Bulls men's basketball
2024–25 Buffalo Bulls men's basketball team
University	University at Buffalo
All-time record	683–641 (.516)
Head coach	George Halcovage (2nd season)
Conference	Mid-American
Location	Buffalo, New York
Arena	Alumni Arena (capacity: 6,783)
Nickname	Bulls
Colors	Royal blue and white [1]
Uniforms
Home Away Alternate
NCAA tournament Elite Eight
1957*
Other NCAA tournament results Sweet Sixteen 1957*, 1965* Appearances 1957*, 1958*, 1959*, 1960*, 1963*, 1965*, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019
Conference tournament champions
1982, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019
Conference regular-season champions
2009, 2015, 2018, 2019
Conference division regular-season champions
2009, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021
* at Division II level

The Buffalo Bulls men's basketball team represents the University at Buffalo in Buffalo, New York, United States. The team currently competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level as a member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Division. Buffalo began play in 1915 and joined the MAC in 1998. They won their first MAC East Division title in 2009, and won a third MAC East Division title in 2015 along with their first outright MAC Regular-Season championship and first MAC Tournament title to earn the program's first bid to the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. The Bulls also have six appearances in the NCAA College Division Basketball Championship between 1957 and 1965 and two appearances in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). Their head coach position was filled on March 30, 2023 when Buffalo hired Villanova associate head coach George Halcovage. ^[2]

Conference affiliations

• 1915–16 to 1942–43 – Independent
• 1943–44 to 1944–45 –
• 1945–46 to 1977–78 – Independent
• 1978–79 to 1987–88 – State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC)
• 1988–89 to 1990–91 – Mid American Conference
• 1991–92 to 1993–94 – East Coast Conference
• 1994–95 to 1997–98 – Mid-Continent Conference (Mid-Con)
• 1998–99 to present – Mid-American Conference

Postseason

NCAA Division I tournament

Bulls vs. Kent State in 2014

The Bulls have appeared in the NCAA Division I tournament four times. Their combined record is 2–4.

Year	Seed	Round	Opponent	Result
2015	#12	First round	#5 West Virginia	L 62–68
2016	#14	First round	#3 Miami	L 72–79
2018	#13	First round Second Round	#4 Arizona #5 Kentucky	W 89–68 L 75–95
2019	#6	First round Second Round	#11 Arizona State #3 Texas Tech	W 91–74 L 58–78

NCAA Division II Tournament results

The Bulls have appeared in the NCAA Division II tournament six times. Their combined record is 5–8.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1957	Regional semifinals Regional Finals Elite Eight	Capital Evansville Kentucky Wesleyan	W 75–64 W 77–75 L 68–72
1958	Regional semifinals Regional 3rd-place game	American Wagner	L 60–77 L 65–72
1959	Regional semifinals Regional 3rd-place game	Saint Michael's Williams	L 51–53 W 78–53
1960	Regional semifinals Regional 3rd-place game	Wabash Arkansas State	L 65–76 W 53–52
1963	Regional semifinals Regional 3rd-place game	South Carolina State Youngstown State	L 63–80 L 53–65
1965	Regional semifinals Regional Finals	Randolph-Macon Akron	W 81–69 L 58–69

NIT results

The Bulls have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) two times. Their record is 1–2.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2005	Opening Round First round	Drexel Saint Joseph's	W 81–76 L 50–55
2021	First round	Colorado State	L 73–75

Alumni Arena

Bulls Basketball complex in Alumni Arena

Victor E. Bull, Buffalo Bulls Mascot, November 5, 2013

The Buffalo Bulls play their home games at Alumni Arena, located in Amherst, New York. The arena seats 6,100 spectators and features a state of the art video-board, sound, and lighting systems.

Notable former players

NBA players

Two former Bulls have played in the National Basketball Association (NBA):

• Sam Pellom: Played for the Atlanta Hawks (1979–82) & Milwaukee Bucks (1982–83)
• Jeenathan Williams: Debuted for the Portland Trail Blazers in 2023

Other notable alumni

• Turner Battle, MAC Player of the Year (2005), former Bulls assistant coach, athletic director of The Park School of Buffalo
• Wes Clark, 2022 TBT Champion
• Modie Cox
• Shannon Evans
• Blake Hamilton, 2022 TBT Champion
• Jeremy Harris, 2022 TBT Champion
• Yassin Idbihi, former professional player, 3× Bundesliga champion and 2× All-Star
• C.J. Massinburg, 2022 TBT Champion & MVP
• Javon McCrea, MAC Player of the Year (2014), basketball player for Buffalo eXtreme of the American Basketball Association
• Justin Moss
• Nick Perkins, 2022 TBT Champion
• Jarryn Skeete
• Mitchell Watt, basketball player for Ironi Nes Ziona of the Israeli Basketball Super League

Retired numbers

Main article: List of NCAA men's basketball retired numbers

Buffalo Bulls retired numbers
No.	Player	Tenure	Ref.
13	Jim Horne	1970–73	[3] [4]
19	Harold Kuhn	1951–55	[3]
50	Sam Pellom	1949–52	[3]
52	Curtis Blackmore	1970–1973	[3]

Honored jerseys

Jerseys were retired but the numbers remain available:

No.	Player	Tenure	Ref.
11	Rasaun Young	1993–98	[5]
11	Turner Battle	2001–05	[6]

All-Americans

The following Buffalo players were named NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans:

• Turner Battle – 2005 (AP Honorable Mention) ^[7]
• Mitchell Watt – 2012 (AP Honorable Mention) ^[8]
• Javon McCrea – 2014 (AP Honorable Mention) ^[9]
• Justin Moss – 2015 (AP Honorable Mention) ^[10]
• C. J. Massinburg – 2019 (AP Honorable Mention) ^[11]

Academic All-Americans

The following Buffalo players were named Academic All-Americans:

• Turner Battle – 2005

Mid-American Conference award recipients

Player of the Year

• Turner Battle – 2005 ^[12]
• Mitchell Watt – 2012 ^[12]
• Javon McCrea – 2014 ^[12]
• Justin Moss – 2015 ^[13]
• C. J. Massinburg – 2019 ^[14]

Tournament MVP

• Xavier Ford – 2015 ^[15]
• Willie Conner – 2016 ^[16]
• Wes Clark – 2018
• Jeremy Harris – 2019

Coach of the Year

• Reggie Witherspoon – 2004 ^[12]
• Nate Oats – 2018, 2019

Defensive Player of the Year

• Dontay Caruthers – 2017, 2019
• Davonta Jordan – 2020
• Josh Mballa – 2021

Freshman of the Year

• Javon McCrea – 2011 ^[12]

Sixth Man of the Year

• Mark Bortz – 2005 ^[12]
• Nick Perkins – 2017, 2018, 2019
• Ronaldo Segu – 2020

Academic All-MAC

• Mark Bortz – 2004, 2005 ^[12]
• Turner Battle – 2003, 2004, 2005 ^[12]
• Vadim Fedotov – 2009 ^[12]
• John Boyer – 2010 ^[12]
• Byron Mulkey – 2011 ^[12]
• Tony Watson II – 2012 ^[12]
• Will Regan – 2013, 2014 ^[12]
• Shannon Evans – 2015
• Nikola Rakicevic – 2017
• Dontay Caruthers – 2019
• Brock Bertram – 2020, 2021
• Tra'Von Fagan – 2021
• David Skogman – 2021

All-MAC teams

All-MAC First Team

• Turner Battle – 2005 ^[12]
• Rodney Pierce – 2009, 2010 ^[12]
• Mitchell Watt – 2012 ^[12]
• Javon McCrea – 2012, 2013, 2014 ^[12]
• Justin Moss – 2015 ^[17]
• C. J. Massinburg – 2018, 2019 ^[12]
• Nick Perkins – 2018, 2019
• Jayvon Graves – 2020
• Jeenathan Williams – 2022

All-MAC Second Team

• Turner Battle – 2004 ^[12]
• Calvin Cage – 2006 ^[12]
• Byron Mulkey – 2011 ^[12]
• Shannon Evans – 2015 ^[17]
• Blake Hamilton – 2017 ^[18]
• Jeremy Harris – 2018, 2019
• Jayvon Graves – 2021
• Jeenathan Williams – 2021
• Josh Mballa – 2021, 2022
• Ronaldo Segu – 2022

All-MAC Third Team

• Lamonte Bearden – 2016 ^[19]
• Blake Hamilton – 2016 ^[19]
• Wes Clark – 2018
• Curtis Jones – 2023 ^[20]

All-Freshman Team

• Yassin Idbihi – 2004 ^[12]
• Javon McCrea – 2011 ^[12]
• Jarryn Skeete – 2013 ^[12]
• Shannon Evans – 2014 ^[12]
• Lamonte Bearden – 2015 ^[17]
• C.J. Massinburg – 2016 ^[19]
• Ben Michaels – 2025 ^[21]

All-Defensive Team

• Willie Conner – 2016 ^[19]
• Dontay Caruthers – 2017, 2019 ^[18]
• Davonta Jordan – 2018, 2019
• Josh Mballa – 2021, 2022

All-Tournament team

• Turner Battle & Yassin Idbihi – 2005 ^[12]
• Max Boudreau – 2009 ^[12]
• Mitchell Watt – 2012 ^[12]
• Shannon Evans & Xavier Ford – 2015 ^[15]
• Lamonte Bearden, Willie Conner & C. J. Massinburg – 2016 ^[16]
• Wes Clark & Jeremy Harris – 2018 ^[22]
• Josh Mballa & Jeenathan Williams – 2021 ^[22]

See also

• Blue Collar U, a team of primarily Buffalo Bulls alumni that participates in The Basketball Tournament

References

1. "University at Buffalo Color Palette" . Retrieved June 28, 2016.
2. Jonah Bronstein (2023-03-30). "UB hires basketball coach George Halcovage from Villanova". WVIB. Retrieved 2023-04-06.
3. 2018-19 Buffalo men's basketball media guide, p. 94–95
4. 1954-1955 Buffalo Bulls Basketball by Scott Hollander at University at Buffalo Libraries
5. Bulls to Honor Former Standout Rasaun Young on March 8, 28 Feb 2019 at UBBull.com (archived)
6. Buffalo, University at (January 6, 2024). "UB to Honor Former Standout Turner Battle on Feb. 17". University at Buffalo. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
7. "Hamilton Earns Honorable Mention All-America Honors". GoHolyCross.com. College of the Holy Cross. March 22, 2005. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
8. "Mitchell Watt Earns AP All-America Honorable Mention Honors". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 26, 2012. Archived from the original on 17 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
9. "Javon McCrea Named AP All-America Honorable Mention". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 31, 2014. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
10. "Justin Moss Named AP All-America Honorable Mention". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 30, 2015. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
11. "Duke freshmen Williamson, Barrett top AP All-America team". APNews.com. Associated Press. April 2, 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
12. "2014 MAC Record Book" (PDF). MAC-Sports.com. Mid-American Conference. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
13. "Justin Moss Named MAC Player Of The Year". UBBulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. March 11, 2015. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
14. "Buffalo's Oats, Massinburg Earn Top MAC Honors". getsomemaction.com. Mid-American Conference. March 13, 2019. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
15. Wright, Branson (March 14, 2015). "Buffalo Bulls forward Xavier Ford named MVP of MAC Tournament 2015: Notebook (photos)". Cleveland.com. The Plain Dealer . Retrieved 16 March 2016.
16. Wright, Branson (March 12, 2016). "Buffalo Bulls' Willie Connor named tournament MVP: MAC Tournament 2016 (video)". Cleveland.com. The Plain Dealer . Retrieved 16 March 2016.
17. "MAC Announces Men's Basketball All-MAC, All-Freshman Teams". MAC-Sports.com. Mid-American Conference. March 9, 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
18. "Hamilton, Massinburg, Caruthers Earn All-MAC Honors". www.ubbulls.com. University at Buffalo Athletics. 6 March 2017. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
19. "MAC ANNOUNCES MEN'S HOOPS ALL-MAC, ALL-FRESHMAN & ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAMS". Mid-American Conference. March 7, 2016. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
20. "2022-23 MAC Basketball Postseason Awards Released". Mid-American Conference. 8 March 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
21. "Men's Mid-American Conference All-Freshman Winners". College Basketball Reference. Sports Reference . Retrieved 5 June 2025.
22. "Men's All-Mid-American Conference Tournament". College Basketball Reference. Sports Reference . Retrieved 5 June 2025.

External links

• Official website