BUFFALO, N.Y.—Lovell Smith (Buffalo/McKinley) matched a career-best with 35 points to go with 12 rebounds and three blocks as he lifted Buffalo State to a 94-83 victory over visiting Villa Maria to capture the crown in the Coles Classic tonight at the Sports Arena.
 
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE:  Buffalo State – 94, Villa Maria - 83
LOCATION: Buffalo State Sports Arena – Buffalo, N.Y.
RECORDS: Buffalo State (3-0), Villa Maria (3-4)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Smith finished 16 of 24 for the game.
• Nico McLean (Buffalo/Amherst) added 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Mike Henry (Syracuse/West Genesee) scored 12 points and grabbed 16 boards.
• Jordan Glover (Buffalo/St. Joe's) and Dom Grayer (Brooklyn/Bishop Loughlin) chipped in 13 and 10 points respectively.
• Buffalo State led the entire game, racing out to a 14-2 lead in the opening four minutes and led 45-37 at the intermission.
• The Vikings cut the deficit to four early in the second half and then again at 83-79 with 1:34 remaining, but the Bengals scored the next five points to put the game out of reach.
• Buffalo State continued its theme of pounding the boards, outrebounding Villa Maria, 61-43, despite going to a small lineup in response to foul trouble for much of the game. 
• The teams combined to commit 48 fouls including five technicals.  The Bengals were 22 of 36 from the free-throw line, while the Vikings were just 11 of 27.

 
FOR THE FOES

• DeJaun Owens led Villa Maria with 18 points.
• Eric Waters had 14 points, while Dominic Douglas netted 13.
• Gerald Bibbs added 11 points and nine rebounds.

 
THE CONSOLATION GAME

• Rosevelt Smith Jr. set a tournament record with 12 assists to go with 10 rebounds and four points to lead Maine-Fort Kent to a 97-64 victory over York (NY) in the consolation game. 
• Fred Sanchez and Will White netted 18 points in the winning effort, and Joe McCloskey added 17.
• Ryan Smart paced York with 15 points and 13 boards.  Ryan St. John also scored 15 points.

 
ALL-TOURNEY TEAM

• MVP: Lovell Smith (Buffalo State); ALL-TOURNEY: Mike Henry (Buffalo State), Gerald Bibbs (Villa Maria), Rosevelt Smith Jr. (UMFK), Ryan Smart (York)

 
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