OXFORD, Ohio – A gritty defensive game kept the Miami women’s basketball team within six points of Mid-American Conference leader Ohio early in the second half, but a tough-shooting night was too much to overcome in a 67-45 loss on Saturday.
The RedHawks shot just 32 percent from the field to drop to 4-19 (1-11 Mid-American).
Mariah Byard put up the game’s first five points on a three-pointer and a jumper in the lane before Courtney Larson put the RedHawks on the board with a long jumper to make the score 5-2 in favor of the Bobcats early on. OU (20-3, 11-1 MAC) struck for the next 10 points on a pair of threes and two layups to open up a 15-2 lead nearly seven minutes in.
Trailing 19-4, Miami pulled within 11 on the strength of a 6-2 spurt. Baleigh Reid started the run with a jumper and the RedHawks got consecutive layups from Jessica Rupright and Reid to cut the gap to 21-10 with 7:50 to go in the opening stanza.
Hannah McCue’s layup with 3:40 to go in the half allowed MU to claw within nine points at 23-14, the closest margin since there was 14:37 left in the opening frame. The Red and White defense was the catalyst as they held the Bobcats without a field goal for nearly seven minutes. OU missed a one-and-one while Larson followed by knocking down a pair of free throws to draw MU within seven at 23-16 with just under three minutes remaining in the half. Ana Richter capped what ended up a 14-4 run by scoring through contact with 2:03 left in the opening stanza. She missed the ensuing free throw, however, and the Bobcats responded by scoring seven-straight points to take a 30-18 lead. Reid hit a pair of free throws to cut the RedHawks’ deficit to 30-20 at the half.
The RedHawks opened the second half with the ball and Molly McDonagh hit a layup to make it an eight-point game at 30-22. After Kat Yelle’s three-pointer upped the Bobcats’ lead to 11, McCue drained a three and Rupright scored on a put back to bring the score to 33-27 with 17:02 to go. That surge was quelled when Kiyanna Black hit three-pointers on consecutive possessions to double the OU lead back to 12 at 39-27.
Miami’s defense held Ohio without a field goal for another five minutes, though it only clawed as close as 10 points over that stretch. The Bobcats eventually bumped their lead to 15 on a Black three and Jasmine Weatherspoon layup, giving them a 46-31 lead with 10:36 to go. The RedHawks would get no closer than 12 the rest of the way.
The Bobcats shot 40.4 percent from the floor and hit 8-of-22 (36.4 percent) of their three-pointers while holding the RedHawks to 32 percent shooting and just 1-of-14 from beyond the arc. OU ended with a 45-34 edge in rebounding and forced 20 MU turnovers while committing 15 miscues. Reid tallied 16 points to lead all scorers while OU’s Quiera Lampkins (15 points) and Black (10) finished in double figures.
Miami is back on the court on Tuesday when it hosts Eastern Michigan at 6 p.m.
