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Box Score

Buffalo UB 6-4,0-0 MAC

Canisius Canis 3-9,0-2 MAAC

Buffalo UB

6-4,0-0 MAC

Final

Dec. 18, 2021

Canisius Canis

3-9,0-2 MAAC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Buffalo UB	25	39	64
Canisius Canis	37	28	65

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 12/18/2021 9:20:00 PM

Fofana’s Late Three Lifts Men’s Basketball Over Buffalo

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FGCU

12/22/2021 | 7 P.M.

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Dec. 22 (Wed) / 7 P.M.

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Senior Ahamadou Fofana's 3-point field goal from the top of the key with 1.1 second left play helped lift the Canisius men's basketball team to a thrilling 65-64 come-from-behind victory over cross-town rival Buffalo Saturday evening at KeyBank Center.

Fofana's game-winning shot helped the Blue and Gold erase a four-point deficit in the game's final 20 seconds, as the Golden Griffins snapped a five-game losing skid to improve to 3-9 on the year. Buffalo saw its three-game win streak come to an end, as the Bulls fell to 6-4 on the season.

GAME RECAP
A turn-around jumper by Buffalo's David Skogman with 50 seconds left in the game put the Bulls up four at 64-60. On the Griffs' ensuing possession, Canisius freshman Xzavier Long scored off an offensive rebound with 15.5 seconds left on the clock to cut UB's lead to 64-62.

What transpired next was a wild defensive series for the Griffs, as out of a timeout, Canisius knocked the ball away from UB with backcourt pressure. After a scramble on the floor, Buffalo was awarded the ball along the far sideline with 4.0 seconds left to play. But before Buffalo could inbound the ball, the Bulls were called for an offensive foul, giving the Griffs the ball back with no time coming off the clock.

Out of a Buffalo timeout, the ball found its way to Fofana, who drilled the game-winning bucket with 1.1 second left. Buffalo's desperation full-court heave was tipped away, allowing the final buzzer to sound and extending the Griffs' win streak to three straight at KeyBank Center, dating back to the 2016-17 campaign.

Canisius shot 45.5 percent from the field and made 3-of-4 from the free-throw line in the game's opening 20 minutes to take a 37-25 lead into the locker at halftime. In the second half, Canisius' cushion reached as many as 14 points at 47-33 after Long scored two of his 10 points on the night. Buffalo responded from there with a 17-2 run over the game's next 5:45 to take a 50-49 lead with 10:25 left to play. In the final 10 minutes of play, neither team led by more than four points, and the contest ended with 14 lead changes and five ties.

Fofana was one of four Griffs to record double-figures in the win, as he scored 16 points to go with four rebounds and three assists. Junior Armon Harried led all scorers with a game-high 20 points, his fourth 20-point performance of the season, while Long and graduate student Scott Hitchon each scored 10 points in the winning effort. For the game, Canisius shot 41.5 percent and made just five 3-pointers, with Fofana accounting for three of the Griffs' five makes from behind the arc.

Buffalo's Jeenathan Williams scored 13 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the loss for Buffalo, while Ronaldo Segu and Tra'Von Fagen each chipped in 12 points. The Bulls shot 35.2 percent from the floor and 18.2 percent from 3-point land in the loss to go with a 49-37 margin in the rebounding battle.

Head Coach Reggie Witherspoon's Postgame Comments
"This was a hard-fought rivalry game. A real grind-it-out game. We were hoping we could get it to be a grind-it-out game because we felt if it was a high-scoring game, that would not have given us as good a chance."

"We've had some struggles in the [early part of the season], but we've had some really good times, too. We played hard and we have played well at times this year, but we have to learn to sustain the effort. We can't just live off shots are going in and playing great. We have to have the mindset that if our shots aren't going in, we want to make our opponents struggle, too."

"This is another learning opportunity for us. We still have a bunch of guys, it may be their third year, but last year they only played 13 games. So they're still learning. One lesson to be learned is just, the hard work, the stuff they're going to have to do after they get out of college, after they stop playing basketball and the ball stops bouncing. Even when you don't think you have a lot to give, you have to give a lot of effort with what you do have. It's just a simple thing, but it's not easy."

GAME NOTES
• Saturday marked the 53rd all-time meeting between the two cross-town rivals, and Canisius leads the series 33-20.
• Saturday was the 20th game in series history decided by five-points or less. Canisius leads the portion of the series 11-9.
• The Griffs improved to 30-19 all-time at KeyBank Center. Canisius also improved to 4-1 against Buffalo in the downtown arena.
• Buffalo's 35.2 percent effort from the field marks just the second time this season Canisius has held a team under 40 percent shooting for the game. The Griffs are 21-5 under head coach Reggie Witherspoon when holding opponents under 40 percent from the floor for the game.
• Fofana's three 3-point field goal makes ties a career-high.
• Long made his first career start in the game, and played all 40 minutes. He is the first Canisius freshman to play a full 40 minutes since former Griff Zach Lewis played the entire game at Siena Feb. 16, 2014.
• The victory for Witherspoon is the 76th in his time at Canisius, which ties him for sixth in career coaching wins on Main Street with Canisius Hall of Fame coach Joseph Curran.
• The Griffs were without senior Malek Green (COVID-19 protocols) and junior Jacco Fritz (ankle).

UP NEXT
Canisius will close out the non-conference portion of its schedule on Dec. 22, as the Blue and Gold return to the Koessler Athletic Center to play host to FGCU. Game time is set for 7 p.m., and the contest will be broadcast live on ESPN3.

For complete coverage of Canisius men's basketball, please follow the Griffs on social media at @Griffs_MBB on Twitter and Instagram.

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