Ball State University
2-67-12; MAC
Miami (OH)
3-58-13; MAC
Hot Shooting Can't Carry Men's Hoops Past Miami
January 31, 2015 | Men's Basketball
OXFORD, Ohio -- The Ball State men's basketball team had one of its best shooting performances of the season Saturday, but Miami's offense was even better down the stretch as the RedHawks defeated the Cardinals 79-73.
Ball State (7-12, 2-6 MAC) made 58 percent of its shots both from the floor and from beyond the arc, matching its season high with 14 made 3-pointers. But Miami (8-13, 3-5 MAC) connected on 70 percent of its shots in the second half, consistently getting into the paint for good looks at the rim.
"That was the thing that really hurt us down the stretch," Ball State coach James Whitford said. "They spread it out and really drove the ball. They were able to get into the box within four or five feet. At the end of the day, that's the reason we did not win this game. Our defense let us down. We played well enough on the offensive end to win."
Franko House and Sean Sellers led Ball State with 15 points each, while Matt Kamieniecki returned to the lineup after a two-game injury absence to score 10 points.
As a sign of just how hot Ball State was from beyond the arc in the first half, Kamieniecki knocked down his first career trey to beat the shot clock late in the half. The Cardinals made 10-of-17 3-point attempts in the first half and built a 38-30 lead at the break.
"We did a good job on offense," Whitford said." We obviously shot the ball well. We got the ball in the box and played inside out. We shared the ball well. It was good for us in that way. Unfortunately, it was good for them, too."
Ball State stretched its lead to as many as 13 early in the second half. It was still a double-digit lead at 49-38 after a Rocco Belcaster jumper with 13:43 to play. That's before Miami went on a 20-4 run to grab its first lead since it held a brief advantage midway through the first half.
The RedHawks' run was really keyed by their full-court pressure. Miami forced Ball State into 10 second-half turnovers (17 for the game) and turned them into 20 points on the other end. They did a good chunk of their damage while Ball State guard Jeremiah Davis sat on the bench with four fouls.
"The press hurt us, obviously," Whitford said. "When it really hurt us was when Jeremiah was out with four fouls and we were down to one ball handler. We put Jeremiah back in with eight minutes to go. From that point on, we evened it out."
Ball State led 70-69 with 1:54 to play before Geovonie McKnight got in the paint for a jumper to put Miami back on top. The Cardinals turned the ball over on their next possession, and Miami's Will Sullivan cashed it in with a corner 3 to push the RedHawks' lead to 74-70 with 42 seconds to go.
Zavier Turner had a shot blocked on the next Ball State possession, and then Miami was able to ice the game at the free throw line. A Davis 3-pointer with 13 seconds left briefly cut the lead to three, but the Cardinals could get no closer.
Eric Washington led Miami with 15 points, followed by Sullivan with 13, Logan McLane with 11 and McKnight with 10.
After two games on the road this week, Ball State now returns home for two in a row. The Cardinals will host Buffalo at 7 p.m. Wednesday and Toledo at 2 p.m. Saturday at Worthen Arena.
Team Stats
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
