BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) -- Turner Battle scored 13 points and made nine assists to lead Buffalo to a 72-56 win over Akron on Saturday.
With the game tied at 35, Battle's 3-pointer with 16:21 left in the second half sparked Buffalo (19-8, 11-7 Mid-American Conference) to a 16-4 run. Playing in his last regular season home game, Battle had assists on four of the Bulls' five field goals during the span.
Roderick Middleton hit three 3-pointers in less than three minutes to close out the run, the last coming at 11:55 to give Buffalo a 53-41 lead.
Akron (18-9, 11-7) pulled to within six at 53-47 with 8:33 remaining after Cedric Middleton, Roderick's brother, scored five points during a quick 6-0 burst.
Buffalo immediately countered with a 10-2 run to put the game away. A field goal by Daniel Gilbert with 6:02 left made it 63-49. The Bulls led by double digits the rest of the way.
Gilbert led Buffalo scorers with 17 points. Roderick Middleton had 15, going 5-for-8 from 3-point range.
Cedrick Middleton tallied a career-high 17 points to lead Akron. Darryl Peterson had 13.
Buffalo's 19th win of the season tied a school record that stood since the 1964-65 season.
The loss ended Akron's hopes of receiving a first-round bye in the upcoming MAC Tournament. Buffalo and Akron will each host first-round games Monday night.
