Miami University
Weber State
Miami Defeats Weber State in Thrilling Fashion
11/12/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 12, 2008
LOS ANGELES--Senior guard Kenny Hayes drained a 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds remaining in the game, was fouled on the shot and hit the ensuing free throw to lift Miami University's men's basketball team to a thrilling season-opening 70-66 win over Weber State (0-1) on Wednesday evening at the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion. The game-winning 3-pointer was Hayes' seventh in seven attempts against Weber State en route to a 24-point scoring effort to lead all players.
Hayes' seven 3-pointers tie for fifth on Miami's single-game chart, while his 100 percent 3-point field-goal percentage ties a Miami single-game record. (Craig Michaelis went 6-for-6 from 3-point range against Nebraska on Nov. 27, 1989.)
Miami's win was Miami head coach Charlie Coles' 300th career win, moving Coles' record to 300-239 overall and 208-155 at Miami. He is just nine wins from becoming the all-time winningest coach in Miami history.
Hayes scored Miami's first eight points, catapulting the RedHawks to a quick 8-0 advantage by the 17:24 mark. He scored 11 of Miami's first 13 points on his way to 17 first-half points. A senior forward Michael Bramos trey put Miami up 18-10 with 11:47 left in the first, and a freshman forward Julian Mavunga dunk at 8:13 again put Miami's lead at eight points, 23-15.
Weber State cut Miami's lead to one with 5:47 remaining, but Miami was able to build its lead back to six points off a senior center/forward Tyler Dierkers layup at 3:45 and again with 2:58 remaining in the half off a Hayes 3-pointer to put Miami up 32-26. The Wildcats, however, went on 7-2 run over the remainder of the half to pull within one of the RedHawks, 34-33.
WSU continued to surge in the opening minutes of the second half, putting together a 5-0 run to claim its first lead of the game and holding a 38-34 advantage with 17:46 remaining. A pair of Kyle Bullinger 3-pointers helped the Wildcats build their lead to 10 points, 49-39, by the 13:51 mark.
Miami chiseled away at the WSU lead over the next eight minutes and recaptured the lead, 59-58, off a freshman guard Kramer Soderberg driving layup at 5:13. A pair of Bramos free throws, another trey from Hayes and one free throw from sophomore forward/guard Antonio Ballard put the RedHawks up 65-61 with 1:34 left.
Weber State's Nick Hansen drained a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left to put the Wildcats within one, 65-64. WSU quickly fouled Bramos, who went to the line and hit one of two attempts to give the RedHawks a two-point edge with 26 seconds left. WSU's Kellen McCoy drove to the basked and tossed in a layup with 16 seconds remaining to knot the game, 66-66.
Miami had one last chance to pull out the win in regulation, and Hayes provided the last-second heroics sinking the trey with 1.7 seconds left and hitting the free throw off the foul to give the RedHawks the 70-66 win.
Dierkers and Bramos were Miami's other double figure scorers, chipping in 13 points apiece. Ballard hauled in a career-high nine rebounds to lead all players, while Dierkers had seven boards and a game-high three steals.
Weber State was led by McCoy with 16 points and Bullinger with 13 points.
Miami faces No. 4 UCLA on Thursday, Nov. 13 at 11 p.m. (ET). The game will be televised on ESPNU. The winner of Thursday's matchup advances to New York next week for the championship rounds.
