Box Score Feb. 27, 2018 Box Score
Box Score (PDF) 
KENT, Ohio ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃÆ'¢'¬" A crazy back-and-forth contest saw the Miami University men's basketball team go to overtime for the second consecutive game. Unfortunately an early run in the extra session allowed Kent State to escape with a 90-83 victory. The RedHawks fall to 15-15 overall and 8-9 in the Mid-American Conference. The Golden Flashes improve to 15-15 overall and 9-8 in the MAC.
Junior guard Darrian Ringo continued his remarkable first year in the Red and White by dishing out 11 assists. He broke Eddie Schilling's 1984-85 single-season record of 214 assists with his fourth of the game and now has 222 on the year. Overall he flirted with a quadruple-double, finishing with seven points, nine rebounds and six steals.
Neither team built a lead of more than six points the entire contest until Kent State hit two free throws with five seconds remaining in overtime. The game had 10 ties and 21 lead changes.
Freshman forward Dalonte Brown led five in double figures for the RedHawks with a career-high 19 points. Freshman guard Nike Sibande was right behind him with 17. Freshman guard Isaiah Coleman-Lands drained five triples for 15 points. Freshman guard Jalen Adaway scored 13, while sophomore center Bam Bowman contributed 12 for Miami.
A pair of three-pointers from Adaway had Miami up 8-6 early. The 'Hawks continued to be triple happy as Coleman-Lands and Brown each hit one themselves. Brown nearly had a second one, but his foot was on the line. Still that bucket gave Miami a 16-11 lead at the 12:22 mark of the first half.
The RedHawks shot went cold over the next five minutes, allowing Kent State to go on a 7-0 run to take an 18-16 lead. An old-fashioned three-point play from Brown put MU back on top 19-18 at the 6:32 mark. The teams continued to trade the lead as Ringo found Bowman for a pair of layups, the second one allowing the junior to break the record.
A triple from the Golden Flashes put them back in front by one, but Ringo then found Brown for a jam that sent the Red and White back on top. Another triple from Coleman-Lands and a layup by Ringo helped send Miami into the break with a 34-32 advantage.
There were six ties and 10 lead changes during the first half. The RedHawks shot 44.8 percent (13-for-29) from the field and were led by Brown with 12 points and Ringo with six assists.
The second half was no different as Kent State opened with a triple to take the lead, while Ringo found Bowman for the layup that gave Miami the advantage right back. The lead continued to change hands as a triple from Coleman-Lands and a layup by Sibande made it 43-40 with 15:09 to go. After the Golden Flashes went ahead 44-43, a pair of free throws from Ringo and a dunk from Adaway gave the RedHawks a 47-44 lead at the 13:26 mark.
Trailing 51-49, Brown drained a three to put Miami back on top. A 5-1 run by the Golden Flashes gave them a 56-53 advantage at the 8:26 mark. Adaway hit a jumper, while Ringo followed with an immediate steal of the inbounds pass and a layup to make it 57-56 with 7:50 to go.
It slowed down a bit as neither team scored over the next two minutes. An old-fashioned three-point play from Sibande and a long-ball from Coleman-Lands made it 63-59 at the 4:59 mark. The RedHawks continued to make free throws and shots, but each time they were poised to pull away, Kent State would drain a three-pointer to get back into it. Coleman-Lands then hit his fifth three of the game, while Ringo converted on one free throw to give Miami its largest lead at 74-68 with 1:39 to go.
KSU hit two free throws to pull within four, but Sibande answered with one that made it 75-70. The Flashes again drained a three-pointer to make it 75-73 at the 41 second mark. Kent State was able to force a steal and get a layup to tie the score at 75 with seven seconds remaining. Miami drove the length of the court before the Flashes knocked the ball out of bounds with 2.0 seconds remaining. Out of the break Sibande appeared to hit the game winning three-pointer at the buzzer, but after subsequent review it left his hand a fraction of a second too late and the game went into overtime.
Kent State scored the first four points of the extra session before a free throw and a layup by Brown pulled the RedHawks to within one at 79-78 at the 3:26 mark. The Golden Flashes then went on a 5-0 run to make it 84-78 with 1:47 to go.
Miami had one last run in it as Sibande drained a pair of free throws. On the next possession Adaway stole the ball and went the length of the court for a layup. He was fouled and converted the free throw to make it 84-83 with 1:14 to go. KSU hit a pair of free throws on its next possession and was able to force the RedHawks into a pair of misses. The Golden Flashes were then able to salt away the 90-83 victory at the line.
Miami finished the game shooting 28-for-61 (45.9 percent) from the field and 10-for-30 (30.0 percent) from behind the arc. Kent State was 31-for-68 (45.6 percent) from the field and 9-for-29 (31.0 percent) from three-point range. The Red and White recorded 11 steals in the contest, but the Golden Flashes had an excellent day from the free throw line at 19-for-21 and held a rebounding advantage of 43-30. Kevin Zabo scored 21 for KSU, while Danny Pippen had 17 points and 18 rebounds.
The RedHawks return home for their regular season finale when they host Ohio Friday for the "Battle of the Bricks." Tip time is scheduled for 7 p.m. and it will air live on ESPN3. Following the contest Rod Mills Jr. and Logan McLane will be honored in a Senior Day ceremony.
