# 2004–05 Buffalo Bulls men's basketball team

The 2004–05 Buffalo Bulls men's basketball team represented the University at Buffalo during the 2004–05 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulls, led by sixth-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, played their home games at Alumni Arena in Amherst, New York as members of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). They finished the season 23–10, 11–7 in MAC play to finish in fifth place in the MAC East. It was the first 20-win season in the school's NCAA Division I history.
They reached the finals of the MAC men's basketball tournament for the first time in school history and at one point held a 19-point lead but ultimately lost to Ohio after a last-second tip-in in overtime. They were also invited to the National Invitation Tournament for the first time in program history and won their opening-round game against Drexel.
Writing for the Associated Press, Tom Withers described it as "Buffalo's dream season."
Following the season, Buffalo guard Turner Battle became the first Bull in program history to be named an Academic All-American, an Honorable Mention All-American, the MAC Men's Basketball Player of the Year and to the All-MAC First Team. Battle and Yassin Idbihi became the first Bulls in program history to be named to the MAC All-Tournament Team. Mark Bortz became the first Bull in program history to be named the MAC Sixth Man of the Year.

## Previous season

The Bulls finished the 2003–04 season with an overall record of 17–12 and a record of 11–7 in conference play. It was their first winning season since having joined the MAC for the 1998–99 season. In spite of that, they lost in the second round of the 2004 MAC tournament. Eleven of the thirteen players from the 2003–04 season, including the eleven who appeared in the most games for the 2003–04 team, returned for the 2004–05 season.

### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| B. J. Walker | 0 | F | 6'9" | 245 | Sophomore | Cincinnati, OH | Transferred to Garden City Community College |
| Marcus Henderson | 4 | G | 5'8" | 165 | Freshman | Niagara Falls, NY | Declared academically ineligible |

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| November 20, 2004* | at No. 8 Connecticut | L 68–90 | 0–1 | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion  Storrs, CT |
| November 23, 2004* | Fairleigh Dickinson | W 87–84 $^{OT}$ | 1–1 | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| November 27, 2004* | Indiana State | W 92–64 | 2–1 | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| December 1, 2004* | Colgate | W 74–62 | 3–1 | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| December 4, 2004 | Western Michigan | L 53–70 | 3–2 (0–1) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| December 7, 2004* | at Elon | W 70–63 $^{OT}$ | 4–2 (0–1) | Alumni Gym  Elon, NC |
| December 11, 2004* | Niagara | W 95–92 $^{2OT}$ | 5–2 (0–1) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| December 18, 2004* | at Canisius | W 69–65 | 6–2 (0–1) | Koessler Athletic Center  Buffalo, NY |
| December 21, 2004* | at Penn State | W 72–70 | 7–2 (0–1) | Bryce Jordan Center  University Park, PA |
| January 2, 2005 | at Bowling Green | L 88–95 | 7–3 (0–2) | Anderson Arena  Bowling Green, OH |
| January 6, 2005 | at Central Michigan | W 83–67 | 8–3 (1–2) | Rose Arena  Mount Pleasant, MI |
| January 9, 2005 | Toledo | W 56–54 | 9–3 (2–2) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| January 12, 2005 | at Akron | L 59–75 | 9–4 (2–3) | James A. Rhodes Arena  Akron, OH |
| January 15, 2005 | Miami | W 67–56 | 10–4 (3–3) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| January 19, 2005 | at Kent State | L 80–85 $^{OT}$ | 10–5 (3–4) | MAC Center  Kent, OH |
| January 25, 2005 | Northern Illinois | W 86–80 | 11–5 (4–4) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| January 27, 2005 | Marshall | W 78–65 | 12–5 (5–4) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| January 29, 2005 | at Eastern Michigan | W 80–68 | 13–5 (6–4) | Convocation Center  Ypsilanti, MI |
| February 2, 2005 | Ohio | L 90–92 | 13–6 (6–5) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| February 5, 2005 | at Miami | L 74–77 $^{OT}$ | 13–7 (6–6) | Millett Hall  Oxford, OH |
| February 8, 2005 | at Western Michigan | W 85–79 | 14–7 (7–6) | University Arena  Kalamazoo, MI |
| February 12, 2005 | Ball State | W 67–58 | 15–7 (8–6) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| February 15, 2005 | Kent State | W 77–66 | 16–7 (9–6) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| February 19, 2005* | at Fresno State ESPN BracketBusters | W 52–49 | 17–7 (9–6) | Save Mart Center  Fresno, CA |
| February 23, 2005 | at Marshall | W 68–55 | 18–7 (10–6) | Cam Henderson Center  Huntington, WV |
| March 2, 2005 | at Ohio | L 77–90 | 18–8 (10–7) | Convocation Center  Athens, OH |
| March 5, 2005 | Akron | W 72–56 | 19–8 (11–7) | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| 2005 MAC Men's Basketball Tournament ||||||
| March 7, 2005 | Northern Illinois First Round | W 73–66 | 20–8 | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| March 10, 2005 | vs. Toledo Quarterfinal | W 85–72 | 21–8 | Gund Arena  Cleveland, OH |
| March 11, 2005 | vs. Western Michigan Semifinal | W 75–68 | 22–8 | Gund Arena  Cleveland, OH |
| March 12, 2005 | vs. Ohio MAC Championship | L 79–80 $^{OT}$ | 22–9 | Gund Arena  Cleveland, OH |
| 2005 National Invitation Tournament ||||||
| March 16, 2005 | Drexel Opening Round | W 81–76 $^{OT}$ | 23–9 | Alumni Arena  Amherst, NY |
| March 19, 2005 | at Saint Joseph's First Round | L 50–55 | 23–10 | Hagan Arena  Philadelphia, PA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. ||||||