Allen Roberts gets off a shot against Saginaw Valley State. Photo by Mike Smith.
The regular season hasn’t started yet, but the Miami basketball team already has a habit that coach Charlie Coles wants to break.
We had “a very slow start, and we’ve got to find a way to take care of that,” Coles said after the RedHawks rebounded in the second half to defeat Saginaw Valley State in exhibition action Sunday at Millett Hall.
“Two weeks in a row now, (we’ve fallen behind) and today we got down even further. We’ve got to do a better job than that.”
A strong second half enabled Miami to post a 70-48 win, but the RedHawks trailed 28-25 at halftime and were down 15 points with 5:35 remaining in the first half.
Poor shooting by the hosts early was a key problem. Miami connected on just 8 of 27 (29.6 percent) over the first twenty minutes. At the same time, Saginaw State made 11 of 23 (47 percent).
“It’s probably nerves and not trusting one another,” said Coles, whose young squad has just three seniors – two of them starters. Losses from last season include three starters – one of which (Michael Bramos) was the MAC Player of the Year. “Trust is a heck of a thing on the court, and when you build trust as a team, sometimes it takes a while.
The second half was nearly an inverse of the first as Miami sank 16 of 27 (59.3 percent) while the Cardinals hit 6 of 27 from the field.
Senior guard Kenny Hayes, coming back on a redshirt year after a wrist injury early last season, led Miami with 16 points. Fellow guard Kramer Soderberg had 15 points – all from three-point range as he made five of eight from behind the arc.
“His hard work in the summer is paying off,” said Coles, adding that Soderberg would see plenty of playing time this season. “I have no plans to get him off the floor – none.”
Coles continued, “His dad is a very good coach and … his dad has given him a lot of basketball knowledge.”
Another keen shooting eye from three-point land was Rodney Haddix. The junior hit all three of his trey shots Sunday, making him a perfect eight for eight over two exhibition tilts. Haddix had 11 points against the Cardinals.
“We’re going to try to get him open. When a guy shoots well, I think it’s up to the coach to find ways to allow him to do what he does best.” Coles said while looking to the regular season. That starts Friday when Miami travels to Towson in Maryland.
One experienced RedHawk who could be a significant contributor during the season may be limited at Towson and during some early contests. Antonio Ballard is coming off an injury. “If we were playing Towson (tonight), I don’t know that I’d have played him,” Coles said.
NOTES:
- Saginaw Valley out-rebounded Miami 40-32 overall. The Cardinals had an 11-5 advantage in offensive rebounds. “I’m not pleased with that,” Coles said.
Julian Mavunga led Miami on the boards with seven rebounds.
- Senior center Adam Fletcher had five points Sunday. Coles indicated he wants to make sure Fletcher gets a number of scoring opportunities each game. Fletcher started 29 games last season and had a career-high 16 points against Eastern Michigan (1/31/09).
- Fletcher and Hayes each had two blocked shots against the Cardinals.
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