Review and preview: Start to finish of the 2024-25 men’s basketball season

The Miami University men’s basketball team has rolled to a 19-5 start during its 2024-25 season, the best record since the 1998-99 season.

The season kicked off on the road against Appalachian State University with a 77-63 win. Junior Bellarmine transfer Peter Suder and redshirt sophomore wing Kam Craft led the team in points that night, totaling almost half of the team’s points.

The RedHawks lost to the Wright State University Raiders and the University of Michigan Wolverines but managed a win against the University of Maryland Eastern Shore sandwiched between the two.

Miami then traveled to the Fort Myers Classic, where they brought home the championship win.

Suder was named the Fort Myers Tip-Off Palms Division MVP in his first tournament with the RedHawks along with Miami Athlete of the Week after leading the team to a 2-0 tournament win. He averaged 17 points per game and shot 9-for-9 from the foul line.

“Anytime you can win a championship, I think that goes a long way,” head coach Travis Steele said. “Our goal is to win the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championship, but sometimes you have to take those smaller victories, so winning that was huge and a big confidence builder.”

The Red and White’s first Fort Myers Classic win against Siena College, 70-58, was Steele’s 100th career win. Steele started with the RedHawks in 2022.

Later in the season, Miami faced multiple non-conference competitors. It secured big wins against Air Force and Sacred Heart University, but it fell short of Indiana University and the University of Vermont.

Suder led the team in points against Air Force, having a career-high of 42 points that night.

Before beginning MAC play, the RedHawks were 8-4. They cemented a winning season after a win against Ohio University in the Battle of the Bricks.

“We realized we had a lot of pieces to be good as a team and took all of our skill development seriously,” Craft said. “Everyone got better in the off-season, and overall, we have a lot of good team chemistry on and off the court.”

The team is made up of a deep bench who all know each other well, and Steele describes the most important attribute of their success as their connectivity.

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“It’s connectivity,” Steele said. “Our guys get along really well and that shows on the floor offensively and defensively. They are not selfish, they put Miami and the team first and themselves second, and that is really hard to find in this landscape we are in.”

Heading into MAC play after the new year, the RedHawks faced six conference opponents, winning each game for a 6-0 lead ahead of the University of Akron.

Throughout those games, leading scorers like sophomore guard Mekhi Cooper, sophomore wing Eian Elmer and junior forward Antwone Woolfolk were showcased, all contributing to the team’s success.

The winning streak broke when the RedHawks faced Akron, the number one team in the MAC. On the road, Miami took the first lead of the game before falling behind 20 points in the first half. The Zips increased their lead significantly throughout the second half despite exceptional performances from redshirt first-year wing Brant Byers, Suder and sophomore guard Evan Ipsaro.

Miami lost 102-75, putting the RedHawks second in the MAC, where they still currently stand.

“Even after the loss we had to Akron, we didn’t let it affect our team chemistry,” Byers said. “I think that is going to be important down the road for the rest of the season.”

Through conference play, Byers’ performance has skyrocketed, with the majority of his points coming in the beginning of the season's second half. Against the University of Buffalo Bulls, Byers put up 18 points, Miami’s second-leading scorer for that game.

“Things have been great since MAC play started,” Byers said. “I am pretty lucky to get some open shots and hit them. Earlier in the season, I was struggling to make a shot, but recently I’ve been starting to make them, so I just want to keep playing hard and defending well and the shots will fall.”

The RedHawks have seven games remaining before MAC tournament play begins in March. The team currently holds a 10-1 record behind Akron, who remain their only conference loss.

The team looks first to win the season title before advancing to the MAC championship and, beyond that, the NCAA tournament.

“We’re panning out as we expected, and being 10-1 in the conference is a huge deal,” Craft said. “We are putting ourselves in a position to win the MAC championship. We just need to keep playing well and shooting the ball well.”

In a 92-80 win against Toledo, Craft had a career-high 40 points allowing the RedHawks to maintain their positioning in the MAC.

Looking ahead to the remainder of the season, the team plans to take it one day at a time, with its next competition on the road against Western Michigan on Feb. 15.

lubyhj@miamioh.edu