Ohio Gets Revenge in 2nd Battle of the Bricks, Defeat Miami 75-66
By: Jack Mueller
The Ohio Bobcats defended their home floor against their rival RedHawks on Saturday, winning 75-66 in front of a sold-out crowd in Athens
The Miami RedHawks will have to wait another year to overcome their Convocation Center demons. Ohio has won the Battle of the Bricks in their building in every game since 2011.
When these teams met at Millett Hall, the Bobcats were without senior forward AJ Clayton (14.2 PPG). He made up for lost time on his senior day. Clayton registered 20 points, leading all scorers.
Clayton’s contributions were one of the reasons that Ohio’s offense was so efficient. In the aforementioned first matchup, the Bobcats shot 37% from the field. On Saturday, that number was 50%. Four Bobcats finished with more than ten points, with Elmore James and Shereef Mitchell coming up big down the stretch.
The RedHawks’ usually reliant three point shooting went cold, which this season has meant that their chances of winning diminish. Miami shot just 27% from beyond the arc, their fifth lowest mark of the season. They are now 1-4 in games where they make less than 30% of their threes.
Four RedHawks finished in double figures, but they couldn’t find the crucial buckets in the final stretch to take them back on level terms with Ohio. Antwone Woolfolk put up his second highest scoring mark of the season, registering 16 points.
Saturday’s win has massive postseason implications for the Bobcats. They now sit at 10-6, and have the edge in their spring to the finish line against Toledo (9-6) and Kent State (9-7). Miami has locked in the second seed in the tournament, and will face one of EMU, WMU and Ball State.
How it Happened
The RedHawks jumped out to a 10-4 lead at the first media timeout after a 7-0 run, led by two threes from Eian Elmer. Antwone Woolfolk and Kam Craft added back-to-back layups after Mekhi Cooper forced an Ohio turnover in the backcourt. Sophomore big man Reece Potter grabbed a steal of his own, and was rewarded with a wide-open dunk at the other end to extend the lead to eight.
The Bobcats responded with a 7-0 run of their own highlighted by a Vic Searles and-one and a reverse layup by Shereef Mitchell. Brant Byers ended the run with a three, but AJ Brown and Shereef Mitchell converted back-to-back shots to tie the game at 15. A Woolfolk turnover allowed Elmore James to give the Bobcats the lead, but the big man made up for it, hitting his second three of the season to make it 19-17.
Woolfolk continued to make an offensive impact, connecting on back-to-back buckets to respond to two Ohio baskets, giving the RedHawks a narrow 23-22 lead. AJ Brown responded with a three for the home side, giving them their largest lead of the game at two points. Elmore James connected from three to extend that lead to five as the clock ticked under the seven minute mark.
The Bobcats were given a chance to extend that lead after Reece Potter was called for a flagrant foul while battling for position in the paint. James took advantage, connecting from the ine to make it 29-23. Searles extended the lead to eight under the basket before Eian Elmer was fouled on a three point attempt. His free throws ended a near four-minute scoring drought for Miami. Suder’s first three of the game cut the lead to three with under five minutes to play in the half.
The RedHawk offense went cold again, going scoreless for over two minutes towards the end of the second half. Clayton took advantage, connecting from three to make it a nine point game. Kam Craft’s mid-range jumper ended the run, but an Elliot three made it a ten-point game with ninety second left in the half. Three free throws for the RedHawks cut the lead to seven going into the halftime break.
Clayton opened the second period with eight points, giving the Bobcats a ten-point advantage after three minutes. Suder and Woolfolk both connected to cut into the lead, but the Bobcats kept finding ways to get points on the board. A Craft three cut the lead to nine before Suder got to the rim for two more.
Eian Elmer’s block on Searles allowed him to hit a turnaround jumper to cut the lead to five, but Ohio responded with a 6-0 run after the RedHawks missed six consecutive shots. Woolfolk’s floater found the bucket after a whistle, and his free throw cut the lead to 62-54 before Clayton’s eighth bucket made it a ten-point game again.
Mekhi Cooper’s three and Woolfolk’s seventh bucket cut the lead to five, but James got to the rim for two more to make it 68-61. Suder responded with a three to cut the deficit to four with under five minutes to play.
James responded to Craft’s mid-ranger with one of his own to make it 72-66. The score would stay that way for the next two minutes, as the clock ticked down to the 1:20 mark before Searls’ free throws extended the lead to eight. Miami couldn’t get two good looks from three to fall with under a minute to play. From there, Suder turned the ball over on consecutive possessions, allowing Mitchell to ice the game from the free-throw line.
Up Next:
Miami faces a long road trip during the week, as they head northeast to take on the Buffalo Bulls. The hosts will enter Tuesday’s game on a five-game skid, having not won since February 11th against the NIU Huskies.
The game will be streamed live on ESPN+, and RiverfrontU will have live updates throughout the game.