READING, Pa.--James Williams (Brooklyn/William Grady) scored 33 points to lead Buffalo State (8-3) past Mary Washington (6-5), 88-86, in tonight's opening round of the Albright College Tournament.

Buffalo State trailed 40-36 at halftime, but used a 15-3 run midway through the second half and led by as many as 12 points with under six minutes remaining. Mary Washington climbed back into the game, and trailed just 87-86 with 1:17 to play. The Eagles had chances to win or tie the game down the stretch, but the Bengals held on despite hitting just 1 of 4 free throws in the closing minute. Mary Washington was 18 of 43 from three-point range, compared to Buffalo State's 4 of 8.

Williams finished 15 of 17 from the field and added seven rebounds. Dante Griggs (Bronx/Chester Academy) scored a career-high 19 points and had four assists. Gregg Jones (Syracuse/Nottingham) and Jobany Tirado (Syracuse/Corcoran) had 11 and 10 points respectively.

Buffalo State will face host Albright in tomorrow's championship game at 4 p.m. The Lions topped Grove City, 95-68, in their first round game to advance to the finals.