Sports
Ohio Men’s Basketball drops close game against Miami, lost four of last five games
By: Joshua Jacob
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OXFORD, Ohio (WOUB) — Millett Hall was rocking with excitement as soon as the Ohio Bobcats (11-10, 5-4 MAC) stepped foot in to face the Miami RedHawks (16-5, 8-1 MAC) for the Battle of the Bricks. The game hung in the balance until the last seconds of the game, where Miami scraped away with the win 73-69.
Ohio was coming off a loss to Toledo (13-8, 7-2 MAC), who pulled away the narrow victory, ending the game 86-83. That game ended the undefeated record the Bobcats had at home, giving them extra motivation.
The Red Hawks have been a commanding presence in the conference, only losing one game, a 102-75 road loss to Akron.
As soon as the ball was tipped, the foot was on the gas, with every player playing for something deeper than the game.
Ohio got a quick start perusing the basketball and coming away with steals. In the first half alone, the bobcats were able to come away with the steal seven times. This helped the Bobcats get an early 12-4 lead.
However, as the game went on, it was evident that Miami’s spacing was better at producing easy shots. Their ability to hit the three slowly chipped away at the Bobcat’s lead as the Bobcats couldn’t hit from behind the arc.
Miami hit from deep six times just in the first half, whereas Ohio only hit one. This added up until the RedHawks caught up with the Bobcats and took and extended the lead. Miami ended the half up with a comfortable 35-26 lead.
For the majority of the second half, the story stayed the same. Ohio would battle back to close the gap, and the RedHawks would match the points and keep the lead. Head coach Jeff Boals talked about his team’s fight.
“Yeah, I mean, they’re always going to battle. You know they play hard. They’re great kids.”
They were also able to keep the lead because of how they were scoring their points. Ohio was driving inside and finding their points at the charity stripe.
On the other hand, Miami scored its points due to efficiency, ending the night by hitting 40% of its field goals. The RedHawks also needed that efficiency, only being able to get to the line late in the game.
This all repeated until the last five minutes of the game when the Bobcats were able to lock down and bring the game within three at 66-63.
The game slowed as Ohio would hit a go-ahead and one basket, and Miami would answer.
The game came down to free throws, and the RedHawks put the game away, snatching a win from the jaws of the Bobcats 73-69. Coach Boals spoke to this, stating, “I said on the radio, there were 40 fouls called–it should have been 41.”
Ohio returns to the Convocation Center on Tuesday looking to bounce back against the Western Michigan Broncos (7-14, 4-5 MAC).
Miami will have a short road trip. On Tuesday, it will face the Central Michigan Chippewas (10-11, 4-5 MAC), hoping to stay strong in the conference.