Despite a strong first half, the Miami University men's basketball team fell to the Mid-American Conference (MAC) leading University of Akron Zips Wednesday night 74-59 in Akron, Ohio.
Freshman guard Brian Sullivan led the way for the RedHawks with 19 points, while sophomore forward Jon Harris poured in 14, senior forward Julian Mavunga dropped 11 and sophomore guard Quinten Rollins added 10 for the Red and White.
A back and forth first half saw the Zips and 'Hawks exchange leads and runs. Akron (19-7, 11-1 MAC) opened the game strong and had a 17-10 lead about halfway through the first half, but Miami made a run to come back.
After cutting the lead to 24-18, the RedHawks went on a 10-0 run to take a 28-24 lead with five minutes left in the first. Akron would battle back again though and tie the score at 33 heading into the half.
The second half was a different story for the Red and White. Akron came out strong and went on an early 13-2 run to take control of the game for good.
Miami tried to battle back, but the closest they would come would be six points as the Zips ended the game on a 28-19 run to secure the 74-59 win.
Akron outscored the RedHawks 41-26 in the second half and held Sullivan to just two points in the second half after the freshman scored 17 of his 19 in the first.
"I think they changed their scheme a little bit on defense in the second," Associate Head Coach Jermaine Henderson said. "Brian had a big first half and they were aware of him in the second. They picked him up off ball screens better and limited his scoring. They also got much more aggressive in the second half. They went to the offensive glass more, and they played harder than us. We outplayed them in the first, but they outplayed us when it mattered."
Sullivan's 19 points led all scorers. His five triples on the night gives him a total of 66 for the year, which is good for sixth place on Miami's top-10 chart for three point field goals in a season. If Sullivan was able to find as much as space as he did in the first half, he might have moved further up the list Wednesday.
"In the first half, my shots were going down," Sullivan said. "I was able to provide the team with a spark it needed to keep the game close. In the second half I wasn't able to provide that spark. I just couldn't find as much open space as I had in the first and my shots weren't falling."
The loss drops the 'Hawks to 8-16 overall and 4-8 in the MAC.
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Miami now turns their attention to Sunday when they host Tennessee State University (TSU) in a bracketbuster contest. The Tigers are 18-10 on the season and 11-4 in the Ohio Valley Conference. TSU upset Murray State University earlier in February when the Racers were the only remaining undefeated Division I team.
"Playing a non-conference game at this point should benefit us," Henderson said. "We are playing Tennessee State and the whole country knows they are the team that beat Murray State. They have size, quickness and a lot of talent. They are a great team and they play in a great conference. This is a game we don't need to worry about our conference standing, so it'll be nice for us."
The loss to the MAC-leading Zips is tough, but the RedHawks are hoping that they can get back on track on Sunday in their non-conference bout. With five games left on their schedule, every game counts.
"We just have to keep looking at this one game at a time," Sullivan said. "We know we aren't playing a conference game this weekend, but at this point, it doesn't matter who we are playing. We just need to keep pushing and keep looking for wins that could give us some momentum going into the conference tournament."
Tip-off Sunday is set for 3 p.m. at Millett Hall. Students can listen to the game on WMSR at www.redhawkradio.com or on Miami's IMG Sports Network.
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