RedHawks seek to end Athens dry spell Last MU road win at Ohio was in 2011 ![]() By MIKE SMITH When Miami visits Ohio Saturday, one of the two teams will leave the court owning a three-game win streak. Ohio has one three-game win streak to its credit this year, but that was back in late November -- early December. It has neither won nor lost three straight in conference play. Miami, on the other hand, has yet to win three straight -- conference or non-conference. Both teams are coming off impressive back-to-back victories. The Bobcats won at Kent State (71-64) for the first time in 10 years Jan. 26 and followed that up Tuesday with a 91-79 drubbing of Buffalo in Athens. Miami is coming off wins over Akron and . . . . . . Kent State -- the No. 1 and No. 2 teams (respectively in the preseason coaches poll. The home court 70-68 win over UA is the Zips only MAC loss of the season. MU's (71-67) triumph at KSU was its first victory in Kent since 2011. Although MU won the last meeting 85-68 (Feb. 23, 2023), the RedHawks have not prevailed in Athens since 2011. Ohio's only MAC home loss this year was its league opener, an 86-77 setback to Toledo. The Bobcats lead the all-time series 118-95. ![]() MORE NOTES: -- Ohio is coached by former Bobcat player/captain Jeff Boals, who is now in his fifth year at the helm. -- The 'Cats are coming off a 91-70 win over Buffalo. The Bulls led briefly early, but Ohio pulled away to a 41-26 halftime lead and expanded the margin after intermission. -- Ohio had seven more field goals after connecting on 45.1 percent from the field. It also hit 16 of 17 at the line. -- Five Bobcats reached double figures in a balanced attack. AJ Clayton led the group with 16 points. Jaylin Hunter recorded nine rebounds as Ohio out-rebounded the visitors 47-38. -- Sheereff Mitchell (13.6 ppg) and Hunter (13.4 ppg) topped Bobcat scorers. -- Ohio is averaging 78.2 points per game (second MAC) on 45.6 percent shooting (6th MAC) and held opponents to 70.9 points per game. -- The Bobcats are third among MAC teams in rebounding (36.4 rpg). -- Ohio tops the MAC in turnover margin (3.95). ![]() -- In its last outing, Miami took an early lead over Kent State and was up 39-24 at the half. Capitalizing at the foul line, KSU made 16 of 23 second half free throws to pull within two with 14 seconds remaining. However, MU held on for the win. -- Darweshi Hunter led the RedHawks with 20 points and grabbed five rebounds. He was eight of eight at the line, with several free throws helping to seal the victory. -- Bryce Bulman (12 points) and Eian Elmer (10 points) also reached double figures. -- Guard Bradley Dean returned to the lineup, playing 16 minutes and scoring five points. -- Jaquel Morris led both teams with 10 rebounds. -- Miami shot 46.3 percent from the field overall and held KSU to 31 percent. -- The Flashes finished with 33 chances at the line, sinking nine. Miami made 16 of 19 charity tosses. -- Fouls piled up in the second half. Mekhi Cooper was the only RedHawk to foul out, but two others had four fouls. KSU had one player foul out and one with four fouls. -- Miami is currently ranked 38th in the country (second in the MAC) in three-point shooting percentage (37.2%). This season the RedHawks rank first in the MAC and 21st in the country in bench points with an average of 29.14 per game. -- Since the start of MAC play, Bryce Bultman is averaging 10.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 0.7 steals. -- Sophomore Jaquel Morris is currently a MAC leader in field goal percentage (70.1%). He is also tied at seventh in the MAC in blocks per game (1.1). This season, Morris finds himself with a total of 21 blocks (tied for ninth in the MAC). So far, Morris has averaged 6.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.1 blocks, 1.0 assists and 0.5 steals. Last season, Morris recorded an average of 1.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, 0.9 blocks, 0.8 assists and 0.3 steals a game. -- Mirambeaux continues to be an inside threat for which every team must prepare. Still, despite double teams and plenty of opponent attention, he is currently averaging 13.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.5 blocks and 0.1 steals. -- Miami's 2023-24 roster is one of the youngest Division I teams in the country. The RedHawks have an average age of 20.07 across the entire team. This season, Miami's freshmen have totaled 550 of 1,549 total points scored in 21 games played. Comments are closed.
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Editor-Publisher Mike SmithMike grew up in Mid-American Conference football and basketball territory and returned there after military service. He has been covering MAC football and men's basketball for much of the last several decades. Archives
February 2025
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