Bobcats sweep season series with RedHawks
Ohio enters MAC Tournament on 6-game winning streak
By Lonnie McMillan / Contributor
Friday, March 8, 2024
OXFORD – Ohio overcame a slow start to take down Miami 72-59 on Friday night at Millett Hall to enter the Mid-American Conference tournament on a six-game winning streak.
The RedHawks had a lead as big as 27-14 with just 3:20 left in the first half, but the Bobcats closed the gap to one by halftime with a 12-0 run and then took control in the second half.
Shareef Mitchell and Aidan Hadaway scored 20 points each for Ohio (19-12, 13-5 MAC), with Mitchell adding eight rebounds.
Anderson Mirambeaux paced Miami (15-16, 9-9 MAC) with 13 points. Eian Elmer added 12 points.
Things started turning the Bobcats’ way beginning with a Mitchell layup. Jaylin Hunter scored a basket, and then Hadaway followed with a 3-pointer, a layup following an offensive rebound and then a free throw. AJ Clayton made two free throws in the final seconds to make it 27-26 at the break.
The run continued in the second half with a Hunter technical foul free throw to tie the game and then a Hadaway 3-pointer that gave Ohio its first lead. Elmer answered with a trey of his own, but Hadaway struck again from long range to put the Bobcats up for good.
Leading 42-38, Ohio got separation with another big run, this time scoring 14 in a row to go up 56-38 midway through the second half. The lead grew to as big as 66-44 on an Ajay Sheldon steal and layup with 5:56 to go.
Miami had its best stretch of the night during a 10-0 run in the first half that grew a two-point lead into a 12-point advantage.
Clayton scored nine points for the Bobcats, with Hunter and Sheldon tallying seven points each. Hunter was just 3-for-11 from the field but had seven assists, five rebounds and four steals. Sheldon had five steals as Ohio forced Miami into 18 turnovers.
Win or lose, Ohio was locked into the No. 3 seed for the MAC tournament ahead of the game with the chance of facing Miami again in the first round, but the RedHawks dropped to No. 7. Instead, the Bobcats will take on No. 6 seed Western Michigan in the final of four quarterfinal games Thursday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
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