Miami University
Central Michigan
Miami Welcomes Central Michigan Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
2/23/2024 12:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
THIS SATURDAY: The Miami University RedHawks will host Central Michigan on Saturday, Feb. 24 at 3:30 p.m. as part of Miami Athletics' ninth annual Love.Honor.Care event. Miami enters this weekend's game tied for sixth place in the Mid-American Conference standings. The RedHawks are even with Kent State and Western Michigan at 6-7 in conference play. With five conference games left in the season, the Red and White are looking to finish in the top eight of the conference standings to secure a spot in the MAC tournament (March 14-16 in Cleveland, Ohio).
RECENT PLAY: The Miami University men's basketball team dropped to Western Michigan 77-58 Tuesday night. Anderson Mirambeaux led Miami with 19 points, while Darweshi Hunter and Evan Ipsaro each added eight points.
THE SERIES WITH THE CHIPPEWAS: Saturday will be the 83rd all-time meeting between Miami and Central Michigan. The RedHawks lead the series 56-26. The two teams last faced off on Jan. 23, 2024, a 71-55 Central Michigan victory in Mount Pleasant, Mich. The Red and White are 28-10 when hosting the Chippewas.Â
ABOUT CENTRAL MICHIGAN: The Central Michigan University men's basketball team finished with a 10-21 (5-13 Mid-American Conference) record last season. Head coach Tony Barbee enters his third season with the Chippewas after taking over the program on April 23, 2021. Coach Barbee previously spent seven seasons with the University of Kentucky. This year, Central Michigan was projected to finish in 12th place in the 2023-24 MAC Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Chippewas are currently 16-10 (10-3 MAC). Central Michigan most recently defeated Bowling Green 62-60 in overtime for its third straight win.
This year, Central Michigan is averaging 66.7 points per game on 42.7 percent shooting and have held their opponents to 69.4 points per game. The team also averages 11.2 assists and 35.8 rebounds in each game they play. Anthony Pritchard leads the Chippewas' offense in scoring (13.4). He also leads the team in assists (4.4) and steals per game (1.7). Brian Taylor currently averages a team best 7.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game.Â
UP NEXT: The Miami University men's basketball team will travel to Bowling Green on Tuesday, Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. The RedHawks previously dropped to the Falcons 78-73 in Oxford, Ohio earlier this season.
STRONG DEPTH: This season, the RedHawks rank first in the MAC and 25th in the country in bench points with an average of 28.19 per game. As Miami's rotation has gotten healthier over the past few weeks, the RedHawks are getting contributions from up and down the lineup. Miami's depth was on display in its most recent game, with 10 different players seeing at least 10 minutes of playing time for the third consecutive game. All 10 of those players have started multiple games this season.
THREE-POINT BARRAGE: Miami is currently ranked 71st in the country (fourth in the MAC) in three-point shooting percentage (36.1%). The RedHawks have shot at least 50% from the three-point line in three games this year. Against Ohio State, the RedHawks knocked down 58.3% of their shots from beyond the arc (7-of-12). The Red and White hit a season-high 13 triples in a win at Marshall (13-of-26, 50%). Miami has two players in the top 25 of three-point shooting percentage in the MAC (Ryan Mabrey and Darweshi Hunter). The RedHawks hit at least 10 three-pointers in a game for the seventh time this season against Ball State.
FACILITATION: The Red and White currently rank first in the MAC and 74th in the nation in assists per game (14.9). Miami also ranks 106th nationally and third in the MAC in assist/turnover ratio (1.26).
MARVELOUS MIRAMBEAUX: This preseason, Anderson Mirambeaux was named a Second Team All-MAC player. He is currently averaging 13.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.6 blocks and 0.2 steals. Mirambeaux is coming off the 2022-23 season where he earned Honorable Mention All-MAC after ranking 18th in the conference with a 14.2 scoring average. He was 10th in rebounds (5.7), 20th in assists (2.6), sixth in field goal percentage (54.2%), 16th in free throw percentage (76.4%) and seventh in blocks (0.9). He scored in double figures 24 times and recorded two double-doubles last season. Mirambeaux also had a career-high 27 points against Evansville in the first game he ever played for Miami.
HUNTER GAMES: In 26 games with Miami, graduate transfer Darweshi Hunter has totaled 322 points (team-high) and has knocked down 40% of his shots from the field. Hunter has recorded 55 three-point field goals (tied for fourth in the MAC) on 35.7% shooting. His 2.1 threes per game is puts him at eighth in the MAC. He also ranks sixth in the MAC in free throw percentage (82.1%). This season, Hunter hit a dramatic 30-foot buzzer beater to lift Miami past Vermont. He recorded 17 points (tied game-high), one rebound and one assist versus the Catamounts. Against Ball State, Hunter hit a clutch three-pointer in the final second of regulation to force overtime. Miami went on to outscore the Cardinals 15-8 from there to claim a seven-point victory. Most recently, Hunter hit a clutch jump shot in the final seconds of regulation to seal a 70-68 victory over Akron. To learn more about Darweshi's story, click here!
MORRIS MADNESS: Sophomore Jaquel Morris is currently a MAC leader in field goal percentage (71.6%). He is also tied at sixth in the MAC in blocks per game (1.1). This season, Morris finds himself with a total of 27 blocks (tied for ninth in the MAC). So far, Morris has averaged 6.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.1 blocks, 0.8 assists and 0.4 steals. Last season, Morris recorded an average of 1.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, 0.9 blocks, 0.8 assists and 0.3 steals a game. Morris recorded the first double-double of his career against Ohio State with 11 points and 10 rebounds earlier this year.
THE BRADLEY DEAN STORY: Bradley Dean sat down with MiamiRedHawks.com to discuss what drew him to join Miami Men's Basketball when the D2CCA All-American and SAC Player of the Year entered the transfer portal this offseason looking for a Division I opportunity on the hardwood. Dean is currently leading the Red and White with 1.1 steals per game. He also leads the team with a 41.1 three-point shooting percentage (minimum of 50 shot attempts or more). Check out the feature story here! To catch up on his most recent action, click here!
FRESHMEN IMPACT: Miami's 2023-24 roster is one of the youngest Division I teams in the country. The RedHawks have an average age of 20.07 across the entire team. This season, Miami's freshmen have totaled 680 of 1,868 total points scored in 26 games played.Â
Mekhi Cooper is currently averaging 6.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists (team-high) and 1.0 steals. Cooper led Miami with three steals (career-high) in a victory over Akron earlier this year. Against Wilberforce, he notched a career-high in rebounds (10) and assists (eight). He also led Miami with a career-high 17 points against Marshall.Â
Eian Elmer has averaged 7.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 0.8 steals, 0.5 blocks and 0.5 assists this year for Miami. On the season, Elmer has led the RedHawks in rebounding on numerous occasions. He put up a career-high 10 rebounds at Ball State. Elmer recorded the most steals of his career against Buffalo (four). He also totaled a career-high 23 points against Eastern Michigan.Â
Evan Ipsaro has put up 6.7 points, 2.5 assists, 2.1 rebounds and 0.8 steals per game. He scored the most points for Miami against Eastern Illinois with a career-high 18. Ipsaro led the team with seven assists (career-high) against Western Michigan. He recorded a career-high three steals versus Northern Illinois. He also added a career-high five rebounds against Ohio State.Â
Jackson Kotecki has totaled an average of 3.9 points, 1.3 rebounds, 0.2 blocks, 0.2 assists and 0.2 steals. Kotecki led the RedHawks with a career-high in points (19) and blocks (two) versus Spalding.Â
Reece Potter has averaged 6.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.5 blocks and 0.4 steals this season. He scored a career-high 17 points versus Bowling Green. He also recorded three blocks (career-high) against Wilberforce.Â
