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EVANSVILLE 77, MIAMI 75

VISITORS SCORE 51 SECOND HALF POINTS
It was the most points allowed by Miami (3-6) this season and included a 51-point second half by the Purple Aces. Evansville (5-5) shot a staggering 76.2 percent after intermission, connecting on 16-of-21 shots from the field. Three of the five misses were on three-point attempts, meaning Evanville (4-of-7 on second half treys) missed just two second-half shots inside the arc.

“We let the other team shoot 76 percent,” Miami coach Charlie Coles said. “ I can’t remember when another team shot 76 percent in a half against us. That’s not guarding anybody. That’s not being tough at all.”

He added, “They just became more aggressive. … I just think we lost our confidence when they came back. You always have to fight toughness with toughness, and Evansville was just tougher.”

EVANSVILLE DEPTH SHOWS
Never mind that Evansville lost one of its top shooters for the season Dec. 13 when sophomore Jordan Jahr broke his foot in practice. Never mind that Miami held Aces leading scorer Colt Ryan (19.8 ppg) to 10 points. UE put five players in double figures and outscored the hosts, 26-23, in points off the bench. It was a 21-5 Evansville advantage in the second half.

One key to Evansville’s offensive success was the ability to penetrate. When the Aces weren’t finishing a drive, they were often dishing off to a nearby open teammate. UE owned a 36-20 advantage over Miami in points in the paint.

"They are a different kind of team," Miami forward Julian Mavunga said. "They run an open post, and they rally screen and cut. We just really didn't do a good enough job defending. Down the stretch, that is what cost us the game."

FOUL LINE FRIENDLY FOR ACES
The Aces were also frequent visitors to the foul line, sinking 19-of-24, including 15-of-18 in a decisive second half that wiped out a 35-26 MU halftime lead. The RedHawks converted 13-of-16 charity tosses for the game and 9-of-10 after intermission.

“They shoot 27 free throws a game,” Coles noted of Evansville. “One of the things I (said) on our pregame (radio) show was, ‘We’ve got to keep them off the line.’”

An early bad omen for Miami were two foul calls against MU point guard Quinten Rollins just 36 seconds into the contest. Rollins, a sophomore , is considered one of the team’s better defenders, and it was a night when the RedHawks sorely needed defenders. But after lasting less than a minute on the floor, Rollins headed to the bench for the remainder of the period. He  totaled 18 minutes for the game.

CAREER HIGH FOR BRIAN SULLIVAN
Freshman guard Brian Sullivan came off the bench and gave Miami a scoring boost as he pumped in 7-of-11 shots from the field (4-of-6 on treys) for a career-high 18 points.

That total tied Mavunga for game-high honors. Josh Sewell netted 14 and Jon Harris chipped in 10 for the RedHawks.

Mavunga also had 12 rebounds to record his sixth double-double of the season and third in as many outings. It wasn’t easy as Evansville blanketed the senior with coverage.  Still, he made 4-of-9 from the field and was perfect from the line on nine attempts. He also dished out five assists after entering the game as the only player in the nation to average more than 20 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists per game.

"They came out with a game plan, and they executed," Mavunga said. "They were really trying to protect the inside - not just me, but drives, as well."

After falling behind early, Miami took a 7-6 lead on Sullivan’s three-ball at 16:23.   Another Sullivan trey at 6:33 put MU up by seven at 25-18.

Evansville twice whittled is down to three points before intermission, with the final time coming at 4:38 when Ryan Sawvell’s turnaround hook in the lane made it a 27-24 game.  The 6-8, 200-pound freshman brought a 3.5 ppg average to Oxford, but he hit 5-of-7 shots from close range on the way to 11 points against the RedHawks.

Denver Holmes led the Aces scoring with 15 points. Joining Holmes and Sawvell in double figures were Ned Cox (14), Kenny Harris (12) and Ryan Colt (10).

REDHAWKS ALSO SHOT WELL
Miami’s 10-4 run to end the first period put the home team out front by nine, 35-26.  The RedHawks owed part of their advantage to 59.1 percent shooting (13-of-21).

They would do almost as well in the second stanza, when they connected on 13-of-34 (54 percent).  Overall, Miami was successful on 56.5 percent of its shots from the floor and scored the same number of field goals (26) as the visitors.

The Purple Aces made 45.5 percent from the field before break, but they were just warming up for a second half run that nearly doubled their first half total.

Trailing 44-36 after Sewell’s triple at 16:29 of the second period, Evansville went on a 16-2 run that began on a three-point play by Troy Taylor at 16:11 and finished with the Aces holding a 52-46 lead after a layup by Rokas Cesnulevsius at 11:58.

Miami rallied to tie the game twice, but were unable to contain the red-hot Aces, who built the lead back up to six points on several occasions.

Treys by Sewell and Mavunga tied the game a final time at 69-all with 2:05 remaining.

COX GETS ALL 14 IN SECOND HALF
Two free throws by Colt, followed by his short jumper off a drive with 52 seconds remaining, put the Aces in the drivers seat. “That little left-handed guard – Cox – he went to work (in the second half),” Coles said. All of Cox’s 14 points came after intermission.

Mavunga battled in heavy traffic to grab an offensive rebound and scored on a put-back with 35 seconds left. However, Evansville twice converted a pair of free throws to restore four point leads. Mavunga’s layup with two seconds left merely reduced the final margin.

"A game like this hurts, because we felt like we played decently ... on offense. We shot a pretty good percentage, but we didn't guard." Mavunga said.

“This was as terrible a loss as I can remember suffering,” said Coles, who was also particularly dismayed following a 51-49 loss to area rival Wright State 10 days earlier.

In between two-point setbacks, Miami managed to defeat Belmont 66-61. Bouncing back from the Evansville loss might be a bit more difficult. The RedHawks face No. 2 Ohio State Thursday in Columbus. Game time is 8:30 p.m.