Basketball

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Erie Community College basketball coach Reggie Witherspoon has been named interim head coach of the men's basketball team following the resignation last week of Tim Cohane.

"We are eager to continue an exciting basketball season under new leadership," said President William R. Greiner.

Witherspoon, who has 16 years of collegiate and high-school coaching experience in Western New York, has taken a leave of absence from his coaching position at ECC.

"Reggie brings with him a proven record of success both on the floor and off, and will serve as a calming influence on the program," said Athletics Director Bob Arkeilpane. "Through his many good works in the community, he is familiar with our program and many of our team members."

In his two-plus seasons at ECC, Witherspoon had a 44-23 record, and last season was honored as Region III Coach of the Year after leading the Kats to a 24-5 record and a Region III title.

Off the court, Witherspoon served as director of amateur athletic events for the Big 4 from 1996-98, and founded, along with two colleagues, a program called Athletes Committed to Excellence (ACE) in 1991.

UB will conduct a national search to identify a new head coach. Witherspoon will be eligible to be a candidate for the position if he chooses.

The university recently received a report from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) detailing infractions of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules and regulations in the men's basketball program.

In their response to the MAC, Greiner and Arkeilpane said UB is "fully committed to working with the conference to address the issues raised in the report."

At the appropriate time, the MAC report will be sent to the NCAA for its review and reaction.

UB 75, Manhattan 71

The men's basketball team rebounded from a tough loss at Canisius to defeat Manhattan College 75-71 on Nov. 30 behind a strong performance from Damien Foster. Foster led all scorers with a career-high 28 points, hitting 10-of-16 from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point range.

The Bulls jumped out to a quick start with a 9-0 run to open the game. Foster got the scoring going, hitting a layup off a pass from Louis Campbell, who dished out a career-high eight assists on the night. The Jaspers were held scoreless until the 16:10 mark, but UB continued the scoring assault and increased its lead to 14-2 at the 13:48 mark for the Bulls largest lead of the half. UB would take a nine point lead, 36-27 into the locker room at halftime.

The Bulls came out strong again in the second half, pushing the lead to 13 points on a fast break dunk by Mike McKie that gave the Bulls a 40-27 lead with 18:58 to play. The lead remained at 13 points at the 15:29 mark, as Foster hit another driving layup to make the score 51-38. But Manhattan would not give up easily and began to cut into the UB lead. The Jaspers used a 9-0 run at that point and eventually cut the lead to just three points, 56-53, with 9:46 left in the game. The Bulls then turned to Foster, who hit a three-pointer and started a 6-0 UB run to push the lead back up to nine. UB would claim its largest lead at 15 points with just under three minutes remaining before giving up some late buckets to make the final score 75-71.

WOMEN'S

UB 73, St. John's 67

Junior center Tiffany Bell scored 28 points and pulled down 11 rebounds as the women's basketball team used a strong second-half performance to defeat St. John's University, 73-67, in non-conference action in Alumni Arena Dec. 1.

St. John's outscored the Bulls, 31-30, and forced the team into 12 turnovers during the first half. However, the second half favored the Bulls, as Bell-who was held to nine points in the first half-exploded for 19. Freshman Kim Kilpela also was a factor in the second half for the Bulls, scoring 12 of her career-high 14 points.

UB's biggest lead of the game, 68-60, came with 3:35 remaining in the second half on a Bell jumper. The Red Storm cut the lead to three with 1:49 remaining. The Bulls managed to keep the lead, however, and hit their next three free throws to clinch the win.

Athletes of the Week

Damien Foster led the men's basketball team to a 75-71 win over Manhattan College with a career-high 28 points. Foster was 10 of 16 shooting from the field and three of five from three-point land. Udo Okeke led the indoor women's track squad to a first-place finish (227 pts.) at the Colgate Invitational as she placed first in the 800 meters (2:12.12) and set new UB and Colgate Fieldhouse records. In the process, she managed to qualify for the ECAC and MAC meets in that event. She was also a member of the record-setting 4x400 meter relay team (3:55.80)

Swimming

MEN'S

Placed seventh (249.50 pts.) at Penn State Invitational

WOMEN'S

Placed sixth at (257 pts.) at Penn State Invitational

Wrestling

Placed 27th (20 pts.) at Las Vegas Invitational

Indoor Track

Women

Placed first at Colgate Invitational (227 pts.)

Men

Placed second at Colgate Invitational (173 pts.)