Suder's 42-Point Night Propels Miami to 3rd Straight Win
By: Jack Mueller
Cover Image: ShotBy.D // IG: @shotby.d_
OXFORD - Peter Suder admitted that he didn’t know much about Miami legend Wally Sczerbiak, but the transfer guard put himself in the record books alongside him in just his seventh game with the RedHawks, scoring 42 points in a 73-60 win over Air Force on Monday night.
“I’m just blessed,” said Suder “I’m honored to play here and had a good night.”
“Players win games… and Peter (Suder) was phenomenal.” said Miami head coach Travis Steele, “It was just get out of the way and just let him go”
A “good night” is an understatement. With his performance, he landed himself in the top ten in single game points total in Miami history (6th), and gave the RedHawks their first 40-point game in the 21st century. The last RedHawk player to eclipse that mark…Wally Sczerbiak (1999 against Washington). Despite his individual brilliance, Suder was quick to credit his teammates.
“When someone has it going they look for that person” said Suder
Peter Suder on the ball for Miami (credit: Micah Graham)
While he was the focal point on offense, he also made an impact on the defensive side of the ball as well, registering three steals. Suder was also the primary defender guarding Ethan Taylor, who came into the game averaging 18. He was held to 12, largely due to his coverage.
“He’s doing everything so you have to be alert when you’re guarding him,” said Suder.
It was not a solo effort though. Antwoine Woolfolk and Reece Potter were tasked with guarding seven-footer Wesley Celichowski, who came into the game averaging more than ten points a night. Air Force tried to run their offense through the big man early, but thanks to the interior presence of the Miami bigs, and some well-timed traps, Celichowski struggled to get into the game, finishing with two points in 15 minutes.
Antwoine Woolfolk in the paint (credit: ShotBy.D)
As a team, Miami forced seven “kills”, which is Coach Steele’s term for forcing three consecutive stops. These “kills”, coupled with Suder heating up in the second half, allowed the RedHawks to pull away from the Falcons.
“In the 22 years I’ve been in college basketball, we've won 96% of those games (with 3+ kills)” said Steele
While Suder will receive most of the headlines, another new face for the Miami program is slowly making a name for himself. Luke Skaljac added seven points in 12 minutes off the bench, shooting 100% from the field. The freshman guard is now shooting 77% on the season, and hasn’t missed a shot since November 9th, against Wright State in the second game of the season.
“He’s got a ton of upside, I think people are just seeing a fraction of what he can do.” said Steele
Eian Elmer and Suder were able to get to the rim, and Mekhi Cooper connected on a jumper from the free throw line to give the home team an early four point advantage. Air Force responded quickly though, going on an 11-2 run behind eight points from Luke Kearney and a triple from Ethan Taylor which gave the Falcons a 13-11 lead at the second media timeout.
Mekhi Cooper Takes Aim from the Free-Throw Line (credit: ShotBy.D)
Suder single-handedly retook the lead for Miami, scoring six straight points over the next three minutes to make the score 17-13. Air Force responded by going on a 9-2 run over the next four minutes to take the lead at 25-23, propelled by another three by Kearney and a dunk by Caleb Walker. The Falcons started the game red-hot from behind the arc, making 55% of their three pointers in the first 15 minutes. Their shooting performance sent them to the break with a 30-29 lead.
“I said to our staff, if this continues, we’re not going to beat them at their own game,” said Steele, “We tried to give them different looks offensively…which I thought we did a much better job of in the second half.”
The RedHawks retook the lead just 30 seconds into the second half through, guess who? Peter Suder, who converted an and-one. Both sides traded baskets for the first five minutes of the half, with neither side able to pull away. That changed as the clock ticked under 14 minutes, as the RedHawks went on a 9-0 run led by six more points from Suder. Miami stretched the lead to 48-39 after Luke Skaljac connected from beyond the arc in the left corner.
Air Force cut the lead to four after Kearney connected from three and Taylor converted a tough, and-one jumper. Not to be outdone, Suder scored eight straight points to give his side a 12-point lead with four minutes to play. The transfer guard was the only player to score for either side for over two minutes. The highlight of the run was a coast-to-coast layup after Suder forced a turnover at the top of the arc.
“I don’t know how he got his hand on it.” said Steele.
Ethan Taylor hit a long three to cut Miami’s lead to eight, but Suder once again got free near the basket to grab his 40th points of the night. Two Evan Ipsaro free throws with just over a minute to play extended the RedHawk lead to 12, which Air Force could not recover from.
The RedHawks improved to 5-2 with the win, and will travel to Bloomington on Friday to face Indiana. The game will serve as a homecoming for Steele, who worked with Kelvin Sampson and the Hoosiers for two years.
“I learned a lot during my time there…I have a lot of respect for that program” said Steele, “Our guys are gonna love the experience, Assembly Hall is awesome.”
Miami will hit the floor of the legendary arena at 7 p.m. to face an Indiana team coming off of a 1-2 trip to the Bahamas after participating in the Battle 4 Atlantis.