MIAMI BASKETBALL

Miami tops Mountaineers in basketball opener

By MIKE SMITH
BOONE, NC -- Peter Suder and Kam Craft combined for 33 points, while four RedHawks reached double figures as Miami opened its 2024 season with a 77-63 win over Appalachian State Monday at Holmes Convocation Center.
The contest was part of a Mid-American and Sunbelt conferences "challenge." All 12 MAC schools visited Sunbelt foes in Monday's first wave..

Home court was certainly "home, sweet home" for App State last year, as the Mountaineers . . . 

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. . . prevailed in all 15 home tilts. Through the first five minutes Monday, it looked as though ASU might keep the streak going. Myles Tate contributed seven points as the Mountaineers built up a 15-8 lead. 

Suder scored the next five RedHawk points to kick start MU's offense and teams traded shots until Eian Elmer's triple tied the game at 22-all with 7:33 to play in the half. 

App State grabbed one-point leads three times before Craft closed first period scoring with a triple that gave Miami a 32-31 edge at intermission. 

Miami, which hit 46.2 percent of 13 threes in the second half, took the lead for good on a triple by Mekhi Cooper at 17:03. 

A 6-0 run, with Evan Ipsaro and Luke Skaljac contributing three apiece, allowed MU to open an eight-point lead (52-44). 
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A series of RedHawk passing turnovers might have opened the door to more trouble, but the Mountaineers were having their share of miscues, as well. By the final horn, Miami registered 14 turnovers while ASU committed 19.

The RedHawks were also able to maintain some distance with timely shooting. They connected on 53.6 percent from the field and 46.2 percent outside the arc in the second half. App State hit 44.4 percent overall and 31.3 percent from long distance after intermission. 

Miami extended its lead to 12 points following a trey by Craft at 5:18. The hosts never got closer than seven thereafter, and MU put the game away by converting free free throws. Antwone Woolfolk's tip-in at 2:05 was the last Miami field goal. After shooting just two free throws the rest of the half, MU sank all eight charity opportunities after ASU was forced to foul in the final minutes. 

Joining Suder and Craft in double figures for Miami were Ipsaro (11) and Woolfolk (10). Elmer was just behind with nine points and tied Suder for team high honors on rebounds (6). 
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Myles Tate led App State with 21 points. 

NOTES: 
>> Three App State players were on the court for at least 34 minutes. Miami had one player with 34 minutes (Suder). The remaining eight players to see action played between 14 and 26 minutes. 
>> Miami's opening night lineup consisted of two juniors (Suder, Woolfolk) and three  sophomores: Elmer, Kraft (R-So) and Cooper 
>> The Mountaineers flashed several monster dunks and appeared to have an early advantage inside. However, Miami finished with 28 points in the paint compared to 18 for the hosts. 
>> The RedHawks are trying to pick up the pace of play this year. They managed a 13-8 advantage in fast break points against ASU. However, the Mountaineers (10) edged Miami (8) in another area of emphasis --offensive rebounds. Still, the RedHawks scored 11 second chance points to seven by App State.