CLEVELAND, Ohio—The Miami University men's basketball team staged a late comeback to close within one of the University at Buffalo with just under five minutes to play, but it was not enough as the RedHawks (12-11) dropped a hard-fought 74-63 decision to the Bulls (15-7) in the quarterfinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Thursday evening.
 
Senior forward Dalonte Brown amassed 17 points, while sophomore guard Dae Dae Grant chipped in 12 points. Redshirt senior forward Precious Ayah made some key plays down the stretch during the RedHawks' run and scored all nine of his points in the second half.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Bulls built an early 11-4 lead, but a triple from Brown and a layup by redshirt sophomore guard Myja White put the RedHawks within two at the 15:52 mark, 11-9.
• Buffalo added to its lead and held a 31-22 advantage with 5:48 to go in the opening half. Miami used a 5-0 spurt that included another Brown three-pointer and a pair of free throws by redshirt senior guard Milos Jovic to pull within four at 4:02, 31-27.
• UB extended its lead to double figures with 1:37 to go in the opening half, 40-29, but a Grant trey at the 1:20 mark put Miami within eight, 40-32, which would be the margin heading into the half.
• After Buffalo extended its lead to 13 points midway through the second half, Miami used an 11-0 run, sparked by a pair of Ayah layups and five points from Brown, to close within two with 7:24 to go, 55-53.
• The Bulls pulled ahead by four, but the RedHawks persisted. An old-fashioned three-point play by Ayah at the 4:45 mark shrunk the deficit to one, 59-58. A 12-2 spurt by the Bulls pushed their lead to double figures, and the RedHawks got no closer.

 
UP NEXT:
Miami concludes its stint in the Mid-American Conference Tournament.