ATLANTA, Ga.— Senior guard Mekhi Lairy scored 23 points and hit the go-ahead shot with 15.8 seconds left as Miami rallied to stun Georgia Tech 72-69 in the season opener for both teams Tuesday night.
 
Lairy led four RedHawks in double figures, scoring 14 of his 23 points in the first half, but it was his late offensive rebound and layup that finished off a Miami comeback down the stretch and gave MU a 70-69 lead. The visitors ended the game on a 9-0 run, and got one last stop to secure the victory over the defending ACC Tournament champions.
 
Dalonte Brown, who scored all 12 of his points in the second half, hit two free throws to account for the final margin. Dae Dae Grant poured in 15 points and Precious Ayah added 10 on 4-4 shooting for the RedHawks (1-0). Georgia Tech (0-1) was led by Michael Devoe, who scored a game-high 26 points.          
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After Georgia Tech took an early 21-13 lead, the RedHawks answered back with nine straight points to go on top. Miami's 14-2 run staked the visitors to a 27-23 lead.
• MU forced 10 first-half turnovers, settling for a 33-33 tie at intermission.
• The RedHawks started the second half on fire, hitting five of their first six field goals to grab a 45-39 lead.
• Georgia Tech used a 10-0 run to take a 55-48 lead midway through the second half.
• Miami didn't lead again until Lairy's heroics on the final offensive possession.

           
NOTES

• With his 12-point performance, Dalonte Brown moved into the top 20 in career scoring at Miami. Brown now has 1,241 points in his MU career.
• Brown added a team-high nine rebounds.
• MU committed only one turnover in the second half.
• Miami is now 77-40 all-time in season openers.
• The RedHawks extended their road winning streak to five straight games (dating to last season).
• Miami hit 9 of 11 from the charity stripe in the second half and 16-21 foul shots for the game.
• 10 different RedHawks played and nine of them scored.
• This was the first all-time meeting between the two schools.

 
 
UP NEXT:
Miami hosts Lamar Saturday, Nov. 13 at 2 p.m. in the 2021-22 home opener to tip off a four-game homestand.