MIAMI BASKETBALL

RedHawks, Akron both seek tourney turnaround

By MIKE SMITH
Akron will certainly enter Thursday's MAC Tournament quarterfinal game as a favorite over Miami, but its one of those games where you can't be too sure about anything. 
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The Zips (13-5 MAC) finished the regular season in second place -- one game behind Toledo. Miami tied Western Michigan for sixth place and settled for a No. 7 tourney seed due to a pair of losses to WMU during the season. 
Neither Akron nor Miami, however, has looked all that good coming down the stretch. 

Akron dropped four of its last six MAC games. The two wins were against Kent State and Northern Illinois. The losses were to Toledo, Ohio, Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan. Dropping the last two cost UA a regular season title. 

Miami, meanwhile, made the tournament field thanks to . . .

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​. . . a three-game win streak that included road wins at Bowling Green and Eastern Michigan after a home victory against Central Michigan. It then finished with decisive home court  losses to Toledo (97-63) and Ohio (72-59). 

The Toledo game started out bad for MU and stayed that way. Miami trailed 11-0 and 22-2 early. It was 54-24 at intermission. Ohio was a different story but similar ending. MU led almost the entire first half, but the Bobcats took over after intermission. Shooting 55.17 from the field and 46.15 on threes in the second stanza, they outscored Miami 46-32.

Toledo's offense was even more effective against MU, with the Rockets connecting on 60.4 percent from the field over two periods. They also knocked down 52.6 percent of their threes and out-rebounded the RedHawks 44-27. 

Another problem area for MU during the final week was turnovers. Head Coach Travis Steele called it an "avalanch" of turnovers when his team committed 18 turnovers. Many of them were "live ball" turnovers, helping Ohio outscore MU 25-12 in points off turnovers.

Against Toledo, the RedHawks actually had less turnovers (11-19), but UT nonethless out-scored Miami 16-10 in points off turnovers. 

Scoring, of course, is another issue. The RedHawks haven't exactly been lighting it up as of late. They  hit 34.38 percent from the field in the decisive second half against Ohio and added to the issue by making just 5 of 13 (38.46%) of their free throws in the period. 
In the loss to Toledo, Miami shot 31.8 percent from the field and 25.8 percent on threes. 

On the scoreboard, MU averaged 58 ppg over its last three contests. Although it lost two of its last three, Akron averaged 73.6 over its last three games. 

The last outing was a 90-84 loss at Western Michigan. Both teams were remarkably close in field goals and 3-point goals. However, WMU made 26 of 35 free throws, while Akron got to the line just 14 times, sinking 11. 

Miami and Akron, of course, did meet (just once) earlier in the year. Miami won that contest at Millett Hall. The RedHawks were up 32-41 at intermission, but UA rallied and tied the contest at 68-all with 13 seconds left. However, Darweshi Hunter hit a jumper with one second left to give Miami a victory. 

So, what's it going to take for Miami to advance? 

The RedHawks could help their cause with improvement in several areas, such as:

 -- Defensive improvement. Allowing teams to shoot 50 percent or better is not a recommended ingredient in success. At times, MU has been hurt from the perimeter (e.g. Ohio, first meeting). At several occasions it has been hurt inside (e.g. Toledo 38, MU 20 in the paint). 
-- Rebounding improvement. Miami is last in the league in rebounding (33.4 rpg). They have held their own at times -- and struggled at other times.
-- Foul issues. Some opponents have managed to put up some big numbers at the line. 
-- Scoring. When RedHawk shooters get on a roll, they can do some manage. But they have have seen some pretty intense defense from quality opponents at end of MU's schedule. Most teams are going to try to take Anderson Mirambeaux away (or at least make it tough on him). There have to be other weapons. When Darweshi Hunter and Dean are scoring, it helps diversity the attack.
-- Senior contributions. Related to the former point, Miami seems to fare best when the seniors are "driving the bus." In the first meeting with Akron, Mirambeaux hit 7 of 9 from the field and scored a team-high 19 points. Hunter had 14 points and Bryce Bultman was one short of a double-double on each end -- nine points and nine rebounds. Bultman, who played 36 minutes in that first meeting, is an energetic competitor who leads the team in rebounds contributes in a number of areas. Hunter has been Mr. Clutch with several buzzer-beating shots to key wins. Mirambeau, meanwhile, has provided Miami with a inside scoring threat who can toss in occasional threes. 
The RedHawks will certainly be challenged while addressing their senior losses after this season. 
-- Limit damage by Akron's key performers. Enrique Freeman was just named the league's Most Valuable Player and consistent double-double threat. In fact, he averages a double-double of 18.1 ppg and 12.8 rpg. He'll get his. Can the RedHawks keep him from "getting his" and then some?
Guard Ali Ali averages 15.5 ppg and had 23 against Miami in January. Freeman tallied 18 points and 12 rebounds. No other Zip player had more than seven points.