ROCHESTER, Mich. – It was a tough shooting night for the Miami University women’s basketball team as it fell in its first road game of the year, 65-51, to Oakland on Friday evening. The RedHawks fall to 1-2 on the season, while the Golden Grizzlies improve to 2-3.
Junior forward Hannah McCue was a monster on the boards against Oakland, finishing with a career-high 19. That tied for the fifth-highest single game total in school history. Along with five points McCue contributed three assists, two blocks and two steals.
Junior forward Jessica Rupright was Miami’s leader offensively, finishing with 14 points and eight rebounds. She also had three assists, three blocks and a steal. Freshman guard Baleigh Reid joined Rupright in double figures with 11 points.
The RedHawks started slowly, hitting only one of their first 11 shots. Oakland used that to build an 18-5 lead with 11:49 remaining in the first half. Rupright ended the Miami drought by draining a three-pointer from the top of the key. The ‘Hawks defense remained tough as their length forced Oakland into several contested shots that it missed. Layups from Reid and Rupright along with a jumper from freshman guard Kayla Brown were part of an 11-0 run that pulled Miami to within two at 18-16. Until the Golden Grizzlies hit a three-pointer at the 5:30 mark, the Red and White had held them scoreless for 6:19.
Oakland went on a 7-0 run to push the advantage back to nine at 25-16. Freshman guard Jazz Smith got the Miami offense going again, hitting a jumper from the left baseline. It was part of an 8-1 run that pulled the RedHawks to within two, capped by a three-pointer from McCue. The Grizzlies hit a jumper at the buzzer to send them into the break leading Miami, 28-24.
Rupright led the ‘Hawks with 10 points in the first half, while McCue had five points and 11 rebounds.
Similar to the first half, a slow start by Miami to begin the second half allowed Oakland to rebuild a nine-point lead at 37-28. Brown and freshman guard Ana Richter each hit shots, but the Grizzlies pushed the advantage to 13 at 47-34 with 11:21 to go.
The RedHawks had one final run in them as Reid and Richter hit jumpers, while senior point guard Courtney Larson drained a three-pointer to pull Miami to within eight. After an Oakland free throw, a layup from Reid cut the deficit to seven at 50-43 with 6:15 to go. That would be as close as the Red and White could get, as a 15-2 run over the next three minutes gave the Golden Grizzlies a 62-45 lead and put the game out of reach. Reid finished the game with a pair of layups to create the 65-61 final score.
Miami shot 18-for-66 (27.3 percent) for the game and 4-for-17 (23.5 percent) from three-point range. Oakland was 24-fo-80 (30.0 percent) and 9-for-35 (25.7 percent) from behind the arc. The RedHawks outrebounded the Golden Grizzlies, 60-52.
Miami returns to action on Sunday when it travels to 16th-ranked Michigan State for a 2 p.m. contest. Tim Bray has the call and it can be heard live on Miami All-Access for those who have a subscription.
