Recap: Men’s basketball jumps to 6-0 after handling Falcons at home

The Miami University RedHawks men’s basketball team (14-4, 6-0 in conference play) continued its winning streak last night with a 84-76 victory against the Bowling Green State University Falcons (7-11, 2-4 in conference play).

The first 20 minutes saw both teams take the advantage several times. The Falcons took a 40-39 lead after the first half and continued their assault, increasing their lead to 54-51 with under 15 minutes to go.

From there, Miami went on a 18-2 run over eight minutes to retake the lead.

Sophomore center Reece Potter followed a jump shot with a 3-pointer to bring the RedHawks up 56-54. After a jump shot from sophomore wing Eian Elmer, junior forward Antwone Woolfolk and sophomore guard Mekhi Cooper combined for another 11, including a 3-pointer from Cooper, to give Miami a 69-56 advantage.

From there, the RedHawks stifled a Bowling Green comeback while adding another 15 points to take their eighth-straight win.

Six RedHawks posted double-digit points against the Falcons. Cooper led with 14 points, including two 3-pointers. He was followed by redshirt sophomore wing Kam Craft (13), redshirt first-year wing Brant Byers (12), junior guard Peter Suder (11), Woolfolk (11) and Elmer (10).

Senior guard Trey Thomas, Bowling Green’s leading scorer in conference play, made three 3-pointers and shot 4-5 on free throws enroute to 17 points. Senior guard Derrick Butler matched him at 17, including four 3-pointers.

The duo were joined by another three Falcons who contributed more than 10 points.

Redshirt first-year forward Jamai Felt (15) shot perfect on field goals at 6-6, while junior guard Javontae Campbell (14) made all eight of his free throws and senior forward Marcus Johnson (11) sank three shots from behind the arc.

Defensively, the RedHawks won the rebound battle with 33, including 25 defensive rebounds, to the Falcons’ 24. Three blocks from Woolfolk outperformed Bowling Green’s two, but the Falcons stole the ball 11 times, their second-most of the season.

Miami’s 6-0 standing puts the team at No. 1 in the Mid-American Conference (MAC).

While the RedHawks handled business at home, the University of Akron Zips (13-5, 6-0 in conference play) brought in a 90-58 win tonight on the road against the University of Buffalo Bulls.