Freshman forward Antonio Ballard goes up for two points in Miami's 66-44 victory over Ball State Saturday afternoon at Millett Hall. (Michael Pickering)
Class was in session Saturday afternoon and the RedHawks passed their test with flying colors.
Miami played textbook basketball during the opening minutes of its showdown with Ball State and cruised to a 66-44 win at Millett Hall.
"The first five to six minutes of the game was the best we've played all year," said Miami Head Coach Charlie Coles.
The RedHawks jumped out to an early lead after hitting eight of their first nine field goal attempts.
The win was Miami's fourth in a row and seventh in its last eight games. It lifted the Red and White to 8-3 in the Mid-American Conference and 12-11 overall.
The RedHawks continued to see strong play from forward Tim Pollitz. Pollitz set the tone early, scoring eight points in an opening 22-6 run. Ball State never got closer than 14 points the rest of the game and ended up dropping its seventh straight to Miami.
Pollitz has been a critical part of the surging 'Hawks' recent win streak, scoring at least 20 points in five of the last six games.
"(Tim Pollitz) gives 110 percent and wears you down," said Ball State Head Coach Ronny Thompson.
Pollitz consistently shredded the Cardinals' man-to-man defense, backing down his defenders for easy layups all afternoon. Pollitz finished the first half with 16 points, only two shy of the 18 points posted by the entire Ball State squad.
Miami kept Ball State (8-16, 4-7 MAC) out of rhythm the entire game with its staunch defense. The RedHawks held the Cardinals to only 25 percent shooting in the first half and 37 percent for the game.
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"Miami did a heck of a job on defense," Thompson said. "They were physical and pounded us from the 3-point line."
While the Cardinals could not seem to buy a bucket, Miami used some hot shooting of its own to push the game out of reach. Both forward Nathan Peavy and point guard Alex Moosmann complimented Pollitz's strong play by not missing a shot in the opening half. As a team, Miami shot a blistering 71 percent in the half.
"We moved well without the ball (which gave us) open shots and layups," Peavy said.
The RedHawks also saw a strong defensive performance from guard Michael Bramos. Although Bramos continued to struggle shooting the ball, he led the team with six rebounds and four blocks while also dishing out seven assists.
"Bramos is doing some marvelous things," Coles said. "He's taking a page from the (Doug) Penno school of 'how can I help my team?'"
The RedHawks also used their size and strength to their advantage, pushing the Cardinal defenders deep into the paint for easy buckets.
"Miami is a strong team," Thompson said. "They manhandled us and did the blue collar things."
Thompson's counterpart agreed.
"(Our size) was advantageous," Coles said. "I was going to use (center Adam) Fletcher but he was a victim of circumstance - there was no big man for him to guard."
With the game all but sealed for the RedHawks, the raucous Millett crowd began chanting "Geno," calling for seldom-used freshman guard Geno Harris. Coles gave Harris the opportunity to play during the final minute of the game, much to the pleasure of those in attendance.
But Harris was not the only young RedHawk to step onto the floor. Sophomore forward Chad James, freshman forward Antonio Ballard and Fletcher all received playing time and gave the crowd a glimpse into the future of Miami basketball.
Saturday's win completed the RedHawks' schedule against the MAC West, with Miami winning five out of six.
The RedHawks will look to continue their winning ways against a tough Kent State team (15-8, 8-2 MAC) Wednesday in Kent, Ohio.
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