BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Miami University men's basketball team had its offensive game working on all cylinders as it knocked off Bowling Green, 82-69, in a key Mid-American Conference showdown on Tuesday evening. The RedHawks improve to 15-13 overall and 7-8 in the Mid-American Conference. The Falcons fall to 19-9 overall and 11-4 in the MAC.
Miami was on fire from behind the arc, tying a season-high by making 15 three-point baskets. The RedHawks shot well overall, finishing the game 29-for-60 (48.3 percent), while frustrating Bowling Green defensively by holding it to 38.1 percent (24-for-63) shooting.
Sophomore guard
Nike Sibande led the way for the Red and White, finishing with a game-high 20 points. Joining him in double figures were sophomore forward
Dalonte Brown (15 points), freshman guard
Mekhi Lairy (12 points) and sophomore guard
Jalen Adaway (11 points). Senior guard
Darrian Ringo played distributor all night long, finishing with nine of the team's 17 total assists.
A couple of three-pointers from junior forward
Bam Bowman, along with layups from redshirt senior guard
Abdoulaye Harouna and Sibande helped Miami jump to a 10-7 lead. The RedHawks shot went cold as Bowling Green answered with a 10-0 run to take a 17-10 advantage with 12:10 to go.
Lairy began hitting from the perimeter as Miami began to make a comeback. A triple from Sibande, pulled the Red and White to within one at 21-20, but back-to-back three-pointers from the Falcons made it a seven-point lead once again at 27-20 at the 8:12 mark.
A layup from Brown started a strong offensive finish to the half. A layup from Sibande cut the deficit to two, while a big dunk from Brown tied the score at 29. Trailing 32-29 with 4:43 to go, a triple from Sibande started 12-0 run over the next three minutes that gave Miami its largest lead of the half. The Falcons hit a three-pointer as time expired, but the RedHawks took 41-35 lead into the locker room.
Sibande led Miami with 12 points in the first half, while Lairy had nine. The RedHawks shot 14-for-27 (51.9 percent) from the field, including 6-for-13 (46.2 percent) from behind the arc. Bowling Green was held to 39.4 percent (13-for-33) shooting in the period.
The Falcons cut the deficit to three at 47-44 early in the second half before a Brown three stopped their momentum. That would prove to be a theme throughout the period as Miami always had an answer when it looked like BGSU was about to go on a run. The Falcons made it a one-point game at 52-51, but this time Sibande drained the triple to make it a four-point advantage with 14:34 to go.
The teams began trading three-pointers as the lead went back and forth from four to seven points. Once Ringo found Lairy for a fast break three-pointer that made it 66-57, it allowed the RedHawks to begin to pull away. Brown found Adaway for an alley-oop, which was followed by back-to-back triples by Adaway and Bowman. A steal from Ringo and another dunk by Adaway sealed the deal by making it 78-59 with 3:22 to go.
Eight different RedHawks scored Tuesday night. Sibande and Adaway tied for the team lead with six rebounds apiece. Miami won the rebounding battle over Bowling Green, 37-36.
For the first time since 2001, the RedHawks will host a ranked opponent inside Millett Hall as No. 21/23 Buffalo comes to town on Friday. Tip time is at 8 p.m. and it will air live nationally on the CBS Sports Network.
