BOWLING GREEN, Ohio— In the 19th game of the season, Miami (7-12, 1-5 MAC) dropped to Bowling Green (9-10, 3-3 MAC) 83-73 Saturday evening at the Stroh Center.
Morgan Safford led the RedHawks with 20 points and
Anderson Mirambeaux finished with 18 points.
Mekhi Lairy recorded 15 points and added a game-high seven assists. Keon Ayers III led the Falcons with 31 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Lairy and Safford each recorded layups early to keep Miami within three at 7-4. The Falcons took their first double-digit lead at 16-6 with 13:40 left in the first half. After some back-and-forth action, Ryan Mabrey knocked down a shot from beyond the arc to trail by 10 points with 6:58 until halftime.
- With 3:14 until intermission, Bryson Tatum recorded a steal that ended in a Mabrey layup to bring the score to 39-26. Mirambeux finished the half by making a three-point field goal as time expired to shrink the the lead to 46-36.
- Bowling Green came out of the intermission on a 6-0 run after knocking down back-to-back three-point field goals. Mirambeaux responded by scoring a pair of layups to keep Miami within 15. Shortly after, Lairy dished the ball to Safford in transition to make it 56-44. The Falcons proceeded to go on a 10-0 run to take a 66-44 lead. A Jaquel Morris finish through contact brought the RedHawks back within 15 at 66-52 after going on a 8-0 run.
- WIth five minutes to play, the RedHawks trailed 74-58 after Eli Yofan knocked down a free throw. Miami came within single digits at 76-67 after Safford converted a layup with 2:27 to play. Despite the final push by the Red and White, the Falcons closed the game out 83-73.
NOTES
- Lairy moved into seventh place on the program's career scoring list with 1,518 points, passing Michael Bramos (2006-2009).
- Lairy moved to fourth in program history with 396 career assists, passing Quinten Rollins (2011-14).
UP NEXT:
Miami continues conference play by traveling to the University of Akron this Tuesday, Jan. 24. Tip time is set for 7 p.m. in Akron, Ohio.
