Central Michigan University Athletics
Saturday, January 9
Buffalo, NY
1 P.M.
Central Michigan University
at
Buffalo
Photo by: Benjamin Suddendorf
CMU Women Head To Buffalo For First-Place Showdown
1/8/2021 3:41:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – A road trip, and a biggie for the Central Michigan women's basketball team.
The Chippewas head to Buffalo on Saturday (1 p.m.) for a showdown between two teams that top the Mid-American Conference.
Both teams are 4-0 in league play and share first place with Bowling Green, which is scheduled to entertain Northern Illinois on Saturday.
The four-time defending MAC champion Chippewas are 6-2 overall and ranked seventh in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25. Buffalo is 7-2 and ranked 11th.
Top Players
Not only does the game pit two of the league's best teams, it also features two of the premier mid-major players in the country: CMU's Micaela Kelly and Buffalo's Dyaisha Fair, the reigning MAC Player of the Year and MAC Freshman of the year, respectively.
Both are among the best players to have ever played at their respective schools.
Kelly is 13th in the nation in scoring at 23.7 points per game, while Fair ranks 21st at 22.4. Fair also leads the MAC with 5.3 assists per game.
Both are among the 15 players named earlier this week to the midseason watch list for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award. Both are also on the Nancy Lieberman Award Watch List. The award goes to the top point guard in college basketball.
The Chippewas
The Chippewas feature three other double-figure scorers in guard Molly Davis (17.3), forward Kyra Bussell (13.6) and guard Maddy Watters (11.0).
Bussell leads CMU in rebounding at 6.4 and gets plenty of help on the boards. Kelly, Davis and junior Jahari Smith all average 5.0 rebounds or better.
Watters has been hot from outside all season long. She has made 23 of her 42 3-point attempts (54.8 percent). She is tied for third in the league in 3-pointers and is fourth in 3-point field goal percentage.
Last Time Out
The Chippewas outscored Akron, 51-25, in the second half in posting an 83-58 MAC win at McGuirk Arena on Wednesday.
History
Saturday's game marks the renewal of one of the MAC's most-intense and competitive rivalries. The teams met just once last season, with the Chippewas coming away with a 98-93 double-overtime victory in Buffalo.
The two programs have met in three of the last five MAC Tournaments in Cleveland. Two of those meetings have come in the championship game. They have split those two meetings. Since the start of the 2015-16 season, CMU has won six of 10 meetings with the Bulls.
The Chippewas head to Buffalo on Saturday (1 p.m.) for a showdown between two teams that top the Mid-American Conference.
Both teams are 4-0 in league play and share first place with Bowling Green, which is scheduled to entertain Northern Illinois on Saturday.
The four-time defending MAC champion Chippewas are 6-2 overall and ranked seventh in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25. Buffalo is 7-2 and ranked 11th.
Top Players
Not only does the game pit two of the league's best teams, it also features two of the premier mid-major players in the country: CMU's Micaela Kelly and Buffalo's Dyaisha Fair, the reigning MAC Player of the Year and MAC Freshman of the year, respectively.
Both are among the best players to have ever played at their respective schools.
Kelly is 13th in the nation in scoring at 23.7 points per game, while Fair ranks 21st at 22.4. Fair also leads the MAC with 5.3 assists per game.
Both are among the 15 players named earlier this week to the midseason watch list for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award. Both are also on the Nancy Lieberman Award Watch List. The award goes to the top point guard in college basketball.
The Chippewas
The Chippewas feature three other double-figure scorers in guard Molly Davis (17.3), forward Kyra Bussell (13.6) and guard Maddy Watters (11.0).
Bussell leads CMU in rebounding at 6.4 and gets plenty of help on the boards. Kelly, Davis and junior Jahari Smith all average 5.0 rebounds or better.
Watters has been hot from outside all season long. She has made 23 of her 42 3-point attempts (54.8 percent). She is tied for third in the league in 3-pointers and is fourth in 3-point field goal percentage.
Last Time Out
The Chippewas outscored Akron, 51-25, in the second half in posting an 83-58 MAC win at McGuirk Arena on Wednesday.
History
Saturday's game marks the renewal of one of the MAC's most-intense and competitive rivalries. The teams met just once last season, with the Chippewas coming away with a 98-93 double-overtime victory in Buffalo.
The two programs have met in three of the last five MAC Tournaments in Cleveland. Two of those meetings have come in the championship game. They have split those two meetings. Since the start of the 2015-16 season, CMU has won six of 10 meetings with the Bulls.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
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