MIAMI BASKETBALL

Depth pays off as Miami edges Bobcats

Brant Byers passes to a teammate. (MVSmith/MRO)

By MIKE SMITH
OXFORD, OH -- Three RedHawks fouled out and another finished with four fouls, but Miami held on for a 73-69 win over rival Ohio Saturday at Millett Hall. The RedHawks bench poured in 35 points in support as MU won for the 10th time in the last 11 games. Miami (16-5, 8-1 MAC) remains in sole possession of second place, while Ohio (11-10, 5-4 MAC) is in fourth place.

It was the fourth loss in five games for Ohio, which again played without injured starters AJ Clayton and Aiden Hadaway. Still, the Bobcats proved to be a tough challenge. Down by nine at the half and 14 midway through the second stanza, Ohio closed to within one (64-63) on a free throw by Shereef Mitchell with 2:43 remaining. 

Evan Ipsaro's driving layup . . . 

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The crowd files in prior to Miami's men's basketball game with Ohio Saturday. One Miami and Alumni promotions brought back many former MU players and a nice crowd that head coach Travis Steele complimented in his post-game comments. (KRSmith/MRO)

Luke Skaljac looks for room as Ayden Evans defends. (MVSmith/MRO)

. . . at the other end temporarily restored a three-point lead for the home team, but  AJ Brown drained two free throws at 1:20 for a 66-65 score. 

Reece Potter set up Miami's final field goal when he found the Eian Elmore cutting down the baseline. Elmore's reverse layup put MU up 68-65 with 31 seconds left. 

Both teams had reached the double bonus, and that played into the final stretch strategy. 

After Shereef Mitchell scored on a layup at the other end, Ipsaro knocked down two free throws for a 70-67 Miami edge. It would be his last points as he drew his fifth foul seconds later immediately after Ohio crossed mid-court. 

Jackson Paveletzke hit both free throws to close within one and Ohio quickly fouled Brant Byers on the inbound. The 6-8 freshman missed his first toss but made the second, leaving MU up by two with 10 seconds left. 

It looked like Ohio would at least tie the game when Paveletzke drove in for a layup. However, the try rolled off. Byers grabbed the rebound and made two more free throws after being fouled with one second on the clock. 

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Peter Suder draws a foul from Shereef Mitchell (MVSmith/MR)

Ohio's Mitchell led all scorers with 20 points. Brown (15) and Paveletzke (11) also reached double figures -- with help at the line. The duo combined to hit 11 of 12 free throws but were 7 of 21 from the field. Overall, the Bobcats connected on 22 of 26 (84.6%) at the line but were 21 of 57 (36.8%) from the field.

Miami had three more field goals, hitting 24 of 59 tries (40.7%). The RedHawks also had four more 3-point goals. However, they made six less free throws (16 of 21). 

Peter Suder led Miami with 15 points before fouling out. Ipsaro and Kam Craft contributed 14 apiece.

Mitchell's 20 points topped all scorers. Other Bobcats in double figures were Brown (15) and Paveltzke (11). 

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Kam Craft drives against Ayden Evans. Craft scored 14 points in Miami's 10th win over its last 11 games. Miami remains alone in second place among MAC teams. (MVSmith/MRO)