Feb. 23, 2002
Stats
OXFORD, Ohio-Miami University's women's basketball team kept its momentum building toward the Mid-American Conference Tournament Saturday afternoon, rolling to its fourth consecutive win and pulling into fifth place in the overall MAC Standings with an 83-71 defeat of Ohio University.
Sparked by a 7-0 game-opening run, Miami seized control in the first half and never let the Bobcats out front. A Heather Cusick (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo) 3-point play at 12:11 gave Miami its largest lead at 13-2, and the RedHawks led 33-23 following a Beth Roederer (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) bucket as time expired.
Ohio, which spent much of the first half trailing by double-digits, could get no closer than six after the opening minutes and shot just 29 percent from the field. Cusick led Miami, which shot 42 percent from the field, with a strong all-around effort of 11 points, five rebounds and three assists.
Both teams came out smoldering in the second half, with Ohio draining six of its first eight shots and Miami hitting its first six shots. With its lead hovering around 10 points, Miami took off on an 8-0 run at the 12-minute mark and built its lead as high as 62-44 with nine minutes to play.
Far from finished, the Bobcats applied the full-court press and retaliated with a 13-2 run of their own over the next four minutes, closing the gap to 64-57 with a Cathy Szall trey at 5:21. A back-and-forth battle ensued from there, but four unanswered points from Jana Butler (Findlay, Ohio/Liberty-Benton) and a pair of Cusick free throws pushed Miami's lead back into double digits with 1:27 to play.
Leading Miami , which shot a torrid 77 percent from the field in the second half, was Cusick, who poured in 23 points while dishing seven assists, clearing six rebounds and swiping four steals. Also tallying in double digits for the Red and White were Butler, who poured in a career-high 18 points, Roederer and Colleen Day (Independence, Ohio/Holy Name), who contributed 11 apiece, and Melanie Kozlowski (Parma, Ohio/Holy Name), who added 11 points off perfect shooting from the field.
Ohio, which dropped to 12-14 and 7-8 in the MAC, was led by Candace Bates' 14 points. The Bobcats scored 48 second-half points against a Miami defense that surrendered just 45 points in last Tuesday's win over Marshall.
Miami concludes its regular season Tuesday when it travels to the University at Buffalo for a 7 p.m. contest. The RedHawks open MAC Tournament play at home on Saturday, March 2 versus an opponent yet to be determined. The first-round tournament game will take place 30 minutes following the 3 p.m. men's game.
