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OXFORD, Ohio - A strong shooting performance from the floor and balanced scoring throughout the lineup propelled the Miami University women's basketball team to a 65-54 victory over Oakland at Millett Hall on Saturday afternoon. Miami improves to 5-2 on the season, while the Golden Grizzlies fall to 4-3.

Five RedHawks scored nine or more points as they shot an even 50 percent from the floor in their third-straight victory.

The Golden Grizzlies hit their first two shots on a Sinclair Russell jumper and an Olivia Nash three-pointer, but sophomore guard Baleigh Reid drained a corner three-pointer and freshman point guard Leah Purvis split a pair of free throws to leave the score 5-4, 2:03 in. Scoring slowed down from there as the teams went over three minutes without a point until Kristen Levering hit a layup to give Miami a 6-5 lead.

After Reid made a runner in the lane to put MU on top 8-5, OU countered with six straight points in the paint to nab an 11-8 lead with 2:40 to play in the first quarter. A Miami timeout settled things down and the RedHawks pulled within a point (13-12) after the first quarter.

Levering evened the score at 13 after splitting a pair of free throws a minute into the second quarter. Down 14-13, Purvis weaved through the defense as a one-player fast break and finished with the layup to put MU on top 15-14, spurring on a 6-0 run that saw sophomore guard Ana Richter make a pair of layups. The run eventually ballooned to 10-1 on a senior forward Jessica Rupright put back and a freshman guard Kendall McCoy baseline jumper to go up 23-15 with four minutes to go in the first half.

Five-straight Oakland points cut the Miami lead to three, but the RedHawks finished the half on a 10-2 run with Purvis netting six of those points to hand them a 33-22 lead at the break.

Sophomore forward Molly McDonagh and Levering each scored early in the third to up the lead to 15 at 37-22 just 1:14 into the second half. The Golden Grizzlies used a three and a couple free throws to pull back within 10, but the RedHawks countered with another McDonagh layup and a Reid jumper to grab a 41-27 lead at the four minute mark of the frame.

Oakland shot themselves back into the game with a 9-0 run over the next 2:26, pulling the gap to 41-36. A couple split trips at the charity stripe along with a layup by Levering bumped the lead by to 45-36, but Taylor Gleason drained a baseline jumper on the following possession to keep OU's deficit at seven. Another OU bucket cut the deficit to five, but Richter found herself open for a three at the wing, which she converted to give Miami a 48-40 lead after three quarters.

A Reid three-pointer moved the Red and White's lead to 51-40 with just over eight minutes to play. After an Oakland bucket, Miami struck for six straight with Reid making a layup and McDonagh converting two bunnies of her own to extend the lead to 57-42 with 5:07 to go and the Golden Grizzlies did not get the score back any closer than nine points the rest of the way.

In addition to making half of their field goals, the RedHawks held the Golden Grizzlies to 34.5 percent shooting. The outside shot wasn't falling for either side as OU hit 4-of-17 (22.2 percent) of its three-pointers while MU went 3-of-18 (17.6 percent) from beyond the arc. Miami enjoyed a dominant 44-29 advantage in rebounding. MU also put up 20 assists on its 28 baskets.

Reid led Miami with 14 points while Levering posted her first career double-double with 13-points and 11 rebounds. McDonagh added 11 points and eight boards of her own. Purvis and Richter both scored nine points with Purvis also dishing out a game-high five assists.

With finals coming up next week, the RedHawks are idle until Dec. 15 when they travel to UT Martin for a 7 p.m. (EST) game.