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OXFORD, Ohio--After rebounding from a tough start to its season finale, the Miami University men's basketball team's valiant comeback effort came up just short in a 67-65 loss to Ohio University Friday evening on Senior Night at Millett Hall.

Senior guard Geovonie McKnight finished his home career with a 22-point performance, while fellow senior guard Eric Washington posted the second double-double of his career with 10 points and a career-high 10 assists. It was McKnight's third 20-point game in his last four outings. The RedHawks (12-19, 6-12 MAC) shot 43.6 percent from the field while grabbing 32 rebounds on the night.

In the first half, Ohio's (20-10, 11-7 MAC) 64-percent shooting performance from beyond the arc helped it build an 18-point lead. Ohio quickly ran out to a 10-2 lead by the first media timeout. A trio of jumpers from the RedHawks cut the lead to 15-8 with 13:44 remaining in the half, but the Bobcats soon used a 7-0 run to regain a 22-8 advantage. Miami would then answer with an 8-0 run to make it 28-18 with 5:47 remaining, spurred on by a pair of McKnight jumpers.

After a quick Ohio flurry, a 7-0 Miami run capped off by a Washington triple and a dunk from sophomore guard Abdoulaye Harouna brought the score to 37-27 with 2:53 to go. With 55 seconds remaining in the period, McKnight used an old-fashioned 3-point play to cut the deficit to eight at 40-32. Following a Harouna lay-in and a frantic final sequence, the Bobcats held a 40-34 lead at the half.

The RedHawks shot 50 percent from the field in the opening half, with McKnight putting up 11 points and Washington dealing out four assists.

Ohio opened the second half strongly with a 5-0 run that put it up 45-34 at the 18:22 mark. After a short Miami run, the Bobcats restored the lead to 50-38 with 15 minutes to play. The RedHawks responded with a 7-0 run capped off by a huge 3-point play by senior Kalif Wright and a put-back by senior Chris Bryant, making the score 50-45 with 12:58 remaining in the game. The RedHawks and Bobcats began to battle with long runs, with Miami cutting the lead to two at 54-52 with under eight minutes to play following a huge triple from McKnight.

Both teams traded buckets before Washington connected on a deep 3-pointer from the top of the arc to make it a one-point game at 62-61 with 3:14 left in the half. The back-and-forth nature culminated with Bryant giving Miami its first lead, 65-64, on a pair of foul shots at the 1:44 mark. Ohio would respond with a layup with 1:08 remaining that gave them a final lead. Miami received one final opportunity to score, but Washington's 3-pointer fell short as time expired.

The No. 11 seed RedHawks now turn their attention to a first-round road matchup in the MAC Tournament on Monday, March 7 at No. 6 seed Ball State. Game time is set for 7 p.m.