Preview: Men’s basketball closes out regular season against Ball State at home

The Miami University RedHawks men’s basketball team (22-8, 13-4 in conference play) will finish its historic 2024-25 regular season at Millett Hall against the Ball State University Cardinals (14-16, 7-10 in conference play) tonight at 6 p.m.

The game will be televised nationally on ESPNU, and the Indiana Pacers’ Power Pack Dunk Team will perform at halftime.

A win against the Kent State University Golden Flashes on Feb. 21 solidified Miami’s first 20-win season since 1998-99, when the RedHawks finished 24-8. The win also secured the RedHawks a spot in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) tournament next week, their third-straight year going to the tournament under head coach Travis Steele.

After the Kent State matchup, the RedHawks defended Millett again with a win over the Northern Illinois University Huskies. Miami hasn’t lost at home since Nov. 9, setting a program record for most consecutive home wins at 14.

The RedHawks took their third loss in five games when they dropped the second Battle of the Bricks 75-66 against the Ohio University Bobcats on March 1. However, Miami clinched the No. 2 seed in the MAC with a road win over the University of Buffalo Bulls on March 4.

Five players scored in the double-digits to bring Miami its 84-69 victory over the Bulls. Junior guard Peter Suder brought in 15 points, closely followed by 14 from first-year guard Luke Skaljac, his most in conference play.

Miami shot 55.9% (33-59) from the field, its third-most accurate of the season. The team sank 11 triples on 19 attempts, good for a 57.9% accuracy, its second-highest in 2024-25.

While the RedHawks cemented their spot in Cleveland, the Cardinals sit at ninth in the MAC, one win behind the Western Michigan University Broncos and just out of tournament contention.

Ball State dropped its last three matchups by less than 10 points each. The Cardinals fell short 87-82 against the University of Akron Zips on Feb. 25 before falling 61-52 against the Bowling Green State University Falcons on March 1 and 69-67 against the Central Michigan University Chippewas on March 4.

Junior guard Jermahri Hill leads the Cardinals with 471 points. He averages 15.7 points per game, the seventh-highest in the MAC. Senior center Payton Sparks and redshirt senior forward Mickey Pearson Jr. average 12.8 and 12.5 points, respectively.

The Cardinals display some of the conference’s most accurate players. Sparks shoots 59.6% on field goals, good for third in the MAC, while junior guard Juanse Gorosito sinks 41.1% of his shots from behind the arc, the sixth-highest in the conference.

When Miami first played the Cardinals on Jan. 7, redshirt sophomore wing Kam Craft put up 28 points, his fourth game with 20 or more points at the time. The RedHawks finished the day with 31 field goals on 56 shots to give them a 80-72 victory.