It will be a very short week for Big 4 basketball teams, as the semester wraps up and final exams begin, with only one day of basketball games, all on Saturday.
The single-day schedule includes a matchup between St. Bonaventure and a team coming off a Final Four appearance in March, as well as the start of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference women’s schedule.
Here is a look at what to watch for this week (Dec. 11-17) in the Big 4:
1. Bona faces Final Four opponent
The St. Bonaventure men face Florida Atlantic in the Basketball Hall of Fame Classic at 4 p.m. Saturday in Springfield, Massachusetts, the first game of a doubleheader at the Mass Mutual Center that includes UMass vs. West Virginia at 6:30 p.m.
The Owls reached the Final Four in March, and fell to San Diego State, 72-71, in a national semifinal game. FAU (7-2) is No. 11 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll and returns all five starters from last season. FAU athletics also has a Western New York connection: Michael DeGeorge, a 1997 St. Joe’s graduate, recently became FAU’s deputy athletic director for branding and communications; and FAU athletic director Brian White is the brother of former UB athletic director Danny White, who is now in the same role at Tennessee.
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2. MAAC women’s schedule begins
The Canisius women and the Niagara women hit the road for their first MAAC games Saturday. The Golden Griffins (4-3) play at 2 p.m. at Siena and then at 11 a.m. Dec. 18 in a rare weekday morning game at Marist. The Purple Eagles (3-6) play at 1 p.m. at Iona, then at 7 p.m. Dec. 18 at Saint Peter’s.
The MAAC schedule likely comes at an opportune time for the Purple Eagles, who have lost four of their last five games, but guard Aaliyah Parker returned after a five-game absence due to illness. The Cardinal O’Hara graduate scored six points and had three rebounds, an assist, two steals and a blocked shot in 16 minutes Wednesday in a loss at Cleveland State.
3. UB women return home
The University at Buffalo women’s basketball team plays its first home game since Nov. 26 when the Bulls host Le Moyne at 2 p.m. Saturday at Alumni Arena.
Alumni Arena has been good to the Bulls this season. They’re 5-0 on campus and haven’t lost a game in their home gym since Feb. 18. Le Moyne is the first of three home games. UB hosts Maryland-Eastern Shore at noon Dec. 30, then opens its Mid-American Conference schedule at 6 p.m. Jan. 3 against Kent State. The Bulls, however, are 0-3 on the road.
4. Players to watch this week
Canisius forward Sisi Eleko registered her fifth double-double of the season – 15 points, 10 rebounds – in Canisius’ 71-64 win Friday at Binghamton. The sophomore from Montreal is averaging 16.1 points and 11.3 rebounds in the Griffs’ first seven games.
Sy Chatman scored 21 points and had 11 rebounds in the UB men’s 82-65 loss Saturday to Western Kentucky, the forward’s third double-double this season. The fifth-year senior is averaging 16.3 points and 6.9 rebounds in 10 games.