Buffalo stymies Golden Grizzlies in overtime

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Oakland’s road woes continued Wednesday night.

Bethany Watterworth scored 28 points to lead the Oakland women’s basketball team (5-6) in a 69-65 overtime loss at Buffalo (4-8) on at Alumni Arena. Brittany Carnago added 11 points, nine rebounds and six blocks for the Golden Grizzlies.

“This was a tough one for us,” said Oakland head coach Beckie Francis. “While I was happy with the way that our team fought back to force overtime, we don’t need to put ourselves in that position. I felt like we came out a little flat to start and that is something we need to learn from as we head into the league season.”

With 0.4 seconds remaining in regulation, Watterworth hit a putback jumper in the lane and was fouled. After video review confirmed the basket was good, she then stepped to the line and hit a pressure-packed free throw to force overtime with the score tied at 58-58.

In the extra period, Watterworth hit a 3-pointer to put OU up by one. However Buffalo outscored OU 11-7 in the overtime. Brittney Hedderson hit a jumper to put UB ahead 67-63 and it proved to be the game-winner. Hedderson set a school-record by scoring 39 points on 16-for-29 shooting and also had a career-high 11 rebounds.

The Golden Grizzlies trailed by as many as eight points in the first half, but Liz Hamlet hit a key 3-pointer just before the half to pull Oakland within two points, down 28-26. Hamlet tied her season-high with nine points.

Oakland held Buffalo scoreless for the first 3:37 of the second half and eventually took the lead on a pair of free throws by Sharise Calhoun. The Golden Grizzlies had the lead three times during the second half, but neither team led by more than five points.

Zakiya Minifee had a game-high 12 rebounds as Oakland set a season-high with 58 total rebounds, including 25 offensive boards. Carnago and Watterworth were the only two OU players in double-digits, as the team shot a season-low 29.2 percent from the field.

Margeaux Gupilan and Nytor Longar both scored key baskets in the overtime period and each finished with 12 points each.

It was the second consecutive meeting between Oakland and Buffalo that was decided in overtime. Oakland won 82-80 at the O’rena when the teams last met in 2005. The Golden Grizzlies are 1-2 in overtime games in 2011.

Oakland will return to action on Dec. 29 playing at South Dakota State at 8 p.m. (ET). The Golden Grizzlies will also face North Dakota State on Dec. 31 as part of that road trip.

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