# 2015–16 Buffalo Bulls men's basketball team

The 2015–16 Buffalo Bulls men's basketball team represented the University at Buffalo during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulls, led by first year head coach Nate Oats, played their home games at Alumni Arena as members of the East Division of the Mid-American Conference. They finished the season 20–15, 10–8 in MAC play to finish in a tie for third place in the East Division and third place overall. They defeated Miami (OH), Ohio, and Akron to be champions of the MAC tournament and earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. In their second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament, they lost to Miami (FL) in the first round.

## Previous season

The Bulls finished the 2014–15 season 23–10, 12–6 in MAC play to be co–champions of the East Division and co–champions of the MAC overall regular season. They defeated Akron and Central Michigan to become champions of the MAC tournament. They received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, their first NCAA Tournament bid in school history, where they lost in the second round to West Virginia.

## Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Will Regan | 2 | F | 6'8" | 230 | Senior | Buffalo, NY | Graduated |
| Bobby Frasco | 3 | G | 6'4" | 185 | Freshman | Mount Prospect, IL | Transferred to Quincy University |
| Shannon Evans | 11 | G | 6'1" | 170 | Sophomore | Suffolk, VA | Transferred to Arizona State |
| Justin Moss | 23 | F | 6'7" | 240 | Junior | Detroit, MI | Dismissed from the team due violation of team rules |
| Xavier Ford | 35 | F | 6'7" | 210 | Senior | Colorado Springs, CO | Graduated |

### Incoming Transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Blake Hamilton | 0 | G | 6'6" | 205 | Junior | Pasadena, CA | Junior college transferred from Mt. San Antonio College |
| Willie Conner III | 2 | G | 6'5" | 185 | Junior | Chicago, IL | Junior college transferred from Angelina College |
| David Kadiri | 4 | F | 6'8" | 190 | Junior | Fort Washington, MD | Junior college transferred from South Plains College |

## Recruiting class of 2015

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Nick Perkins PF | Ypsilanti, MI | Milan High School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | N/A | Sep 24, 2014 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| C. J. Massinburg SG | Dallas, TX | South Oak Cliff High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | N/A | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015. ||||||

### Recruiting class of 2016

US college sports recruiting information for 2016 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Quate McKinzie #39 PF | Burgaw, NC | Pender High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Sep 14, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 77 |||||||
| Evan Clayborne PF | Dayton, OH | Thurgood Marshall High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Jun 29, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015. |||||||

## Schedule

Source:
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| 11/06/2015* 9:00 pm | | Daemen | W 87–68 | | 25 – Massinburg | 11 – Smart | 5 – Bearden | Alumni Arena (3,257) Amherst, NY |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| 11/13/2015* 9:00 pm | | Pittsburgh–Bradford | W 109–49 | 1–0 | 25 – Wigginton | 10 – Wigginton | 4 – Bearden | Alumni Arena (3,112) Amherst, NY |
| 11/16/2015* 7:00 pm | | at Old Dominion Hall of Fame Tip Off | L 58–77 | 1–1 | 12 – Skeete | 5 – Tied | 2 – Massinburg | Ted Constant Convocation Center (6,906) Norfolk, VA |
| 11/18/2015* 7:00 pm | | at Saint Joseph's Hall of Fame Tip Off | L 67–89 | 1–2 | 14 – Hamilton | 7 – Hamilton | 4 – Skeete | Hagan Arena (3,451) Philadelphia, PA |
| 11/21/2015* 7:30 pm | | vs. North Carolina A&T Hall of Fame Tip Off | W 86–68 | 2–2 | 19 – Wigginton | 11 – Wigginton | 5 – Wigginton | Mohegan Sun Arena (4,507) Uncasville, CT |
| 11/22/2015* 8:00 pm | | vs. Vermont Hall of Fame Tip Off | W 77–71 | 3–2 | 20 – Bearden | 7 – Hamilton | 4 – Bearden | Mohegan Sun Arena (3,813) Uncasville, CT |
| 11/28/2015* 2:00 pm | | Canisius | W 98–96 $^{OT}$ | 4–2 | 18 – Bearden | 8 – Wigginton | 5 – Bearden | Alumni Arena (3,112) Amherst, NY |
| 12/02/2015* 7:00 pm | | St. Bonaventure | L 58–60 | 4–3 | 16 – Wigginton | 10 – Wigginton | 2 – Wigginton | Alumni Arena (4,192) Amherst, NY |
| 12/05/2015* 5:15 pm, ESPN2 | | at No. 7 Duke | L 59–82 | 4–4 | 17 – Massinburg | 9 – Smart | 3 – Bearden | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| 12/07/2015* 9:00 pm, ESPNU | | at No. 4 Iowa State | L 63–84 | 4–5 | 16 – Skeete | 4 – Tied | 3 – Bearden | Hilton Coliseum (14,130) Ames, IA |
| 12/12/2015* 2:00 pm | | Binghamton | W 80–64 | 5–5 | 17 – Massinburg | 11 – Wigginton | 8 – Hamilton | Alumni Arena (3,031) Amherst, NY |
| 12/19/2015* 2:00 pm | | Montana State | W 80–73 | 6–5 | 18 – Bearden | 8 – Wigginton | 4 – Bearden | Alumni Arena (2,384) Amherst, NY |
| 12/22/2015* 7:00 pm, CSNMA | | at VCU | L 69–90 | 6–6 | 17 – Wigginton | 9 – Wigginton | 4 – Massinburg | Siegel Center (7,637) Richmond, VA |
| 12/29/2015* 7:00 pm | | Delaware | W 99–79 | 7–6 | 23 – Connor | 7 – Tied | 6 – Connor | Alumni Arena (3,212) Amherst, NY |
| MAC regular season |||||||||
| 01/05/2016 7:00 pm, ASN/ESPN3 | | Akron | L 71–75 | 7–7 (0–1) | 16 – Connor | 7 – Connor | 3 – Hamilton | Alumni Arena (2,226) Amherst, NY |
| 01/08/2016 7:00 pm, CBSSN | | at Kent State | W 76–67 | 8–7 (1–1) | 22 – Connor | 8 – Wigginton | 8 – Bearden | MAC Center (3,522) Kent, OH |
| 01/12/2016 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Eastern Michigan | L 69-81 | 8-8 (1-2) | 16 – Hamilton | 13 – Perkins | 2 – Tied | Convocation Center (1333) Ypsilanti, MI |
| 01/16/2016 3:30 pm, ESPN3 | | Central Michigan | W 74-61 | 9-8 (2-2) | 14 – Hamilton | 9 – Hamilton | 12 – Skeete | Alumni Arena (3,547) Amherst, NY |
| 01/19/2016 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Miami (OH) | W 77–60 | 10–8 (3–2) | 22 – Hamilton | 10 – Smart | 4 – Tied | Millett Hall (1,221) Oxford, OH |
| 01/23/2016 4:35 pm | | at Western Michigan | L 71–91 | 10–9 (3–3) | 17 – Connor | 8 – Hamilton | 4 – Skeete | University Arena (3,079) Kalamazoo, MI |
| 01/26/2016 7:00 pm | | Ball State | W 76–64 | 11–9 (4–3) | 18 – Bearden | 9 – Hamilton | 6 – Tied | Alumni Arena (3,522) Amherst, NY |
| 01/30/2016 7:00 pm | | at Toledo | W 73–68 | 12–9 (5–3) | 17 – Hamilton | 8 – Wigginton | 3 – Tied | Savage Arena (5,041) Toledo, OH |
| 02/02/2016 9:00 pm, ASN/ESPN3 | | at Northern Illinois | W 90–78 | 13–9 (6–3) | 23 – Bearden | 7 – Tied | 7 – Bearden | Convocation Center (1,494) DeKalb, IL |
| 02/06/2016 3:30 pm | | Eastern Michigan | W 80–70 | 14–9 (7–3) | 14 – Tied | 9 – Hamilton | 4 – Tied | Alumni Arena (3,417) Amherst, NY |
| 02/09/2016 7:00 pm, TWCSC/ESPN3 | | Toledo | L 69–71 | 14–10 (7–4) | 17 – Perkins | 6 – Perkins | 8 – Hamilton | Alumni Arena (2,706) Amherst, NY |
| 02/13/2016 2:00 pm, ESPNU | | Ohio | L 75–94 | 14–11 (7–5) | 36 – Massinburg | 6 – Hamilton | 4 – Hamilton | Alumni Arena (2,702) Amherst, NY |
| 02/16/2016 7:00 pm | | at Akron | L 70–80 | 14–12 (7–6) | 21 – Massinburg | 8 – Hamilton | 3 – Hamilton | James A. Rhodes Arena (3,069) Akron, OH |
| 02/20/2016 12:00 pm | | Bowling Green | W 88–74 | 15–12 (8–6) | 24 – Hamilton | 7 – Hamilton | 6 – Bearden | Alumni Arena (3,397) Amherst, NY |
| 02/23/2016 6:00 pm, TWCSC/ESPN3 | | Kent State | W 87–70 | 16–12 (9–6) | 21 – Massinburg | 7 – Smart | 8 – Bearden | Alumni Arena (3,284) Amherst, NY |
| 02/27/2016 3:30 pm | | at Ohio | L 96–103 $^{OT}$ | 16–13 (9–7) | 28 – Connor | 11 – Hamilton | 4 – Bearden | Convocation Center (7,221) Athens, OH |
| 03/01/2016 7:00 pm | | Miami (OH) | L 59–67 | 16–14 (9–8) | 20 – Hamilton | 13 – Hamilton | 7 – Bearden | Alumni Arena (4,798) Amherst, NY |
| 03/04/2016 7:00 pm | | at Bowling Green | W 87–83 | 17–14 (10–8) | 20 – Tied | 5 – Tied | 4 – Bearden | Stroh Center (2,189) Bowling Green, OH |
| MAC Tournament |||||||||
| 03/10/2016 9:00 pm, ESPN3 | (3) | vs. (11) Miami (OH) Quarterfinals | W 94–81 | 18–14 | 25 – Connor | 16 – Hamilton | 7 – Hamilton | Quicken Loans Arena (2,311) Cleveland, OH |
| 03/11/2016 9:00 pm | (3) | vs. (2) Ohio Semifinals | W 88–74 | 19–14 | 22 – Connor | 9 – Tied | 9 – Bearden | Quicken Loans Arena (6,427) Cleveland, OH |
| 03/12/2016 7:30 pm, ESPN2 | (3) | vs. (1) Akron Championship | W 64–61 | 20–14 | 18 – Massinburg | 11 – Hamilton | 6 – Bearden | Quicken Loans Arena (6,719) Cleveland, OH |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| 03/17/2016* 6:50 pm, TNT | (14 S) | vs. (3 S) No. 11 Miami (FL) First Round | L 72–79 | 20–15 | 20 – Perkins | 9 – Hamilton | 3 – Bearden | Dunkin' Donuts Center (11,559) Providence, RI |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. S=South Region. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||