Jan. 26, 2006
Box Score
AKRON, Ohio--Miami University's men's basketball team (9-8; 6-3 Mid-American Conference) suffered its third straight loss with a 52-45 defeat at Akron (14-4; 7-1 MAC) on Thursday evening at James A. Rhodes Arena.
Miami was able to capture a three-point lead by the 15:55 mark in the first half, 6-3, off layups by Tim Pollitz and William Hatcher and a jumper from Michael Bramos. A Bramos trey at the 12:19 mark put the RedHawks up one, 9-8, but the Zips went on a 5-0 spurt to post a 13-9 lead by the 9:52 mark.
The RedHawks went on a run of their own, going on a 10-2 surge off 3-pointers by Doug Penno and Monty St. Clair and a pair of layups by Tim Pollitz to take a 19-15 lead with 5:00 remaining in the first half. The Zips rattled off seven straight points and eventually the teams would be tied 23-23 with 1:48 remaining in the half. Nathan Peavy nailed a jumper to put the RedHawks up two with 1:40 left, but Dru Joyce drained a trey for the Zips to hand Akron a one-point lead, 26-25, which they would carry into the half.
Hatcher hit a pair of free throws at the 18:04 mark to give Miami a 27-26, which would be its last lead of the game. A Hatcher jumper knotted the game 29-29 with 15:26 remaining, but the Zips would go on to build a seven-point lead by the 6:42 mark, 42-35. A Hatcher jumper with 34 seconds left in the game pulled Miami within four points, 47-43, but Akron hit five free throws down the stretch to secure a 52-45 win.
Hatcher led all scorers with 14 points and added six rebounds to pace the RedHawks. Tim Pollitz recorded 10 points and added a game-best nine rebounds.
Joyce led Akron with 12 points, while Darryl Peterson added 11 points.
Miami travels to Ohio for a noon battle on Sunday, Jan. 29.
NOTES: Tim Pollitz tied a career-high with nine rebounds ... it was his third nine-rebound effort of the season ... Hatcher played his fourth straight 40-minute game and the ninth complete game of the season.
