ATHENS, OH – For the first time in 15 years, the Miami RedHawks defeated the Ohio Bobcats at the Convocation Center. The 110-108 win Friday, March 6 wasn’t just a dramatic overtime victory over an archrival. It was the culmination of a months-long miracle.
On Dec. 1, Travis Steele was hard at work preparing for IU-East. The RedHawks were off to a hot start; 6-0, a nice continuation from last year’s record-setting group (a 25-9 record, most wins ever in a season; 14-4 in the MAC).
Talking through his team’s preparation, Steele allowed himself to dream big for a moment.
“I hope we go the whole way,” Steele said. “That would be incredible.”
With allusions to Bob Knight and the unbeaten Hoosiers of 1976 out of the way, Steele turned his attention back to the matter at hand.
Miami would win that next game against IU-East, and the next, and the next. For 95 straight days after that Dec. 1 daydream, the RedHawks did nothing but win. Sitting at 30-0, there was just one opponent left to conquer.
It happened to be archrival Ohio on the road in Athens. Ohio’s Convocation Center had been a house of horrors for Miami for more than a decade, as the RedHawks fell in this building 14 games in a row. To finally break the curse, the RedHawks had to be what they’ve been all year: unflappable.
Despite trailing in the first half, despite three technical fouls being called against them, despite Ohio storming back to force overtime, Miami’s men of Steele came back stronger after each setback.
“We love each other,” Steele said after the game, “and I think it shows in the way we play.”
Miami’s dream season will continue into the Mid-American Conference tournament and the story is far from finished. But for Travis Steele’s RedHawks, 31-0 means college basketball immortality.
Trey Perry ignites 1st half run
In front of a raucous Bobcats student section, Miami trailed after a thundering Ohio dunk. Feeling the momentum shifting away, it was a freshman who took charge.
Lakota East grad Trey Perry, just one game removed from his game-winning layup to dispatch Western Michigan, turned on the jets for a 7-2 run by himself. He burst through contact for two acrobatic layups and splashed home a 3-pointer, generating energy that quickly became infectious.
“He has that swagger and that belief,” Steele said of Perry postgame. “It just permeates the way they play.”
Eian Elmer, another Cincinnati native from Taft, was the first to catch the Perry momentum. He followed Perry to drop 7 consecutive points of his own, pulling away from the Bobcats to stabilize into the half. Elmer would hit the final shot of the half, keeping Miami up 54-48.
“I’m super proud of Eian,” Steele said.
It was a career night for Elmer, finishing with a personal best 32 points and adding 12 rebounds. Perry, for his part, ended 3 points shy of his career best by scoring 21 points.
RedHawks survive overtime in Ohio thriller
Things couldn’t be simple for the cardiac RedHawks in a season full of dramatic finishes.
Miami led by 10 points with just over 10 minutes to go in the game but it wouldn’t last long. Over the next three minutes, Miami would be called for two technical fouls and a flagrant foul. Ohio used the ensuing foul shots to claw back to 88-88. The energy in Athens was building to a frenzy, and a fan threw what looked to be a T-shirt onto the court after a Bobcats foul.
“You have to focus on the things you control,” Steele said. “I didn’t lose my mind tonight. I wanted to a few times.”
Neither team could establish any amount of control the rest of regulation. With the game tied at 100 a piece, Ohio’s Jackson Paveletzke had a shot to win the game. On his way to a career-high 37 points, Paveletzke tossed up a floater that hung on the rim for an impossible length of time before falling off. Overtime.
In overtime, Miami and Ohio battled back and forth until the final horn. Miami’s Justin Kirby hit one of two free throws with just four seconds left to go up by 2 points. As an entire stadium held its breath, Ohio’s last second 3-pointer fell just short. Once again, the RedHawks defied the odds and survived.
Miami enters the MAC tournament unbeaten
Miami becomes just the fifth team to end the regular season undefeated this century. The RedHawks join 2020-21 Gonzaga, 2014-15 Kentucky, 2013-14 Wichita State and 2003-04 St. Joseph’s. While all of those teams ended up as top seeds in the NCAA Tournament, Miami’s seeding will continue to be a subject of debate.
Miami will have a chance to build its resume further in the Mid-American Conference tournament. The RedHawks will begin their quest for the conference’s automatic bid to the Big Dance on March 12 with a rematch with UMass, a team they played close games against twice in the regular season.
If they continue to win through the bracket, the RedHawks could be looking at a showdown with Akron in the tournament finals. Akron ended Miami’s season with a 76-74 win in the tournament championship game last year, and the RedHawks will be eager for a chance at revenge.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How Miami reached regular-season perfection with an overtime thriller
Reporting by Chase Souder, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
