West Virginia vs. Buffalo: Score and Twitter Reaction from March Madness 2015

West Virginia used its high-pressure defense to maximum effect, forcing Buffalo to commit 17 turnovers, and survived a late rally en route to a 68-62 victory in the second round of the 2015 NCAA tournament.

The Bulls received a lot of attention coming into the game. Combine the presence of former Duke star Bobby Hurley patrolling the sidelines with the school's first trip to the Big Dance, and they became a trendy upset pick from the moment the bracket was released.

West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins said the Bulls represented a tough opening matchup, in large part because they took on the attitude of their coach, as Mark Gaughan of The Buffalo News noted:

"

They really compete, I think that's the biggest thing. They've adopted Bobby's personality. They really come after you. They compete. They do a great job of gang-guarding. They play without any fear. That's a team that's already played Kentucky in Lexington, played Wisconsin at Wisconsin. They're not going to be in awe of anybody.

"

Huggins clearly pounded that message into his team during the week. There was no sense of overlooking the underdog, as the Mountaineers immediately entered their patented press defense. It forced several quick mistakes, allowing them to jump out to a 7-0 lead.

Brad Evans of Yahoo Sports pointed out the early struggles for the Buffalo ball-handlers:

It was an illustration of exactly how difficult it is to game-plan for West Virginia's defense. The Bulls had five days of practice to get ready and still looked completely out of sorts offensively. It led to early opportunities at the other end for the Mountaineers.

Buffalo was finally able to find a rhythm after the halfway mark of the opening 20 minutes. Jonah Javad of WGRZ highlighted a key Raheem Johnson dunk that sparked a run:

The Bulls cut the lead to three with just over four minutes left in the half. That seemed to serve as a wake-up call for Huggins' group. The team responded with a 7-0 run to close out the half to take a 10-point lead into the break.

Seth Davis of CBS Sports summed up the first half:

Buffalo came out of halftime with a burst of energy. A quick 7-0 spurt cut the lead back down to three. Once again, however, West Virginia was able to survive the flurry by getting easy looks around the hoop.

Jason Arkley of The Athens Messenger spotlighted the problem for UB:

West Virginia did leave the door open for a Buffalo comeback bid by missing some shots on the interior. In fact, the game got downright sloppy for a stretch in the middle of the half. Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review joked about the lackluster play from both sides.

There was also a steady stream of foul calls that disrupted the flow. Jeremy White of WGR commented on that aspect of the contest:

The Bulls kept chipping away, getting the WVU lead back down to four at the final media timeout. The Mountaineers had to back off some defensively due to foul trouble.

That's when Xavier Ford came alive. The senior forward scored six straight points for the Bulls to get them back tied with less than three minutes to go. Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports noted the deadlock:

Buffalo couldn't close out the upset bid, though. A couple of Devin Williams free throws gave West Virginia the lead back, and Justin Moss missed a layup for Buffalo. A three from Tarik Phillip with 29 seconds to go sealed the deal for the Mountaineers.

West Virginia celebrated the escape:

Matt Norlander of CBS Sports noted the absence of a 12th seed upsetting a No. 5 seed this year:

Buffalo's season comes to a close with a 23-10 record. The good news for the Bulls is that they are slated to return most of their key contributors, including Moss and Shannon Evans. They should be one of the favorites to emerge from the MAC once again next season.

West Virginia, the No. 5 seed in the Midwest Region, advances to play the winner of No. 4 Maryland against No. 13 Valparaiso. Although their games aren't usually aesthetically pleasing, the Mountaineers' style of play defensively will make them a tough out.

The Bulls will surely attest to that after Friday's game.