Historic Miami basketball season adds to ‘proud tradition’
RedHawks were regular-season MAC champions, await Selection Sunday
•
Published
The Miami University men's basketball team opened the MAC Tournament at Rocket Arena in Cleveland against the University of Massachusetts. (Photos by Ricardo Treviño Jr. and Scott Kissell)
Historic Miami basketball season adds to ‘proud tradition’
RedHawks were regular-season MAC champions, await Selection Sunday
•
Published
Minutes after his team knocked off college basketball’s last unbeaten team, University of Massachusetts coach Frank Martin was direct when asked his thoughts regarding Miami University’s chances of earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
“They better.”
“This league is too good,” Martin said during the press conference following the Minutemen’s 87-83 upset of top-seeded Miami. “I’ve coached in Conference USA, Big East; name a league, I’ve been in it. The top two teams in this league are as good as anyone in some of those leagues I’ve just mentioned.”
The RedHawks completed the regular season a perfect 31-0, winning the MAC championship in the process and rising to as high as No. 19 in the AP Top 25 poll. They are currently No. 20.
Miami’s immediate future will be determined Sunday night. The men’s basketball Selection Sunday show airs at 6 p.m. on CBS. The women’s basketball Selection Sunday show follows at 8 p.m. on ESPN.
The men’s tournament tips off March 17 with the First Four in Dayton, with first-round action set for March 19-20 at eight different sites nationwide.
“They better.”
“This league is too good,” Martin said during the press conference following the Minutemen’s 87-83 upset of top-seeded Miami. “I’ve coached in Conference USA, Big East; name a league, I’ve been in it. The top two teams in this league are as good as anyone in some of those leagues I’ve just mentioned.”
The RedHawks completed the regular season a perfect 31-0, winning the MAC championship in the process and rising to as high as No. 19 in the AP Top 25 poll. They are currently No. 20.
Miami’s immediate future will be determined Sunday night. The men’s basketball Selection Sunday show airs at 6 p.m. on CBS. The women’s basketball Selection Sunday show follows at 8 p.m. on ESPN.
The men’s tournament tips off March 17 with the First Four in Dayton, with first-round action set for March 19-20 at eight different sites nationwide.
The Miami University men's basketball team completed a perfect 31-0 regular season.
“We’ve got a great group of guys who can handle things like this, and we’re just going to get better,” Suder said.
Miami has drawn national attention throughout the course of the season as the RedHawks collected win after win – several of them in thrilling, nail-biting fashion.
Thursday’s MAC quarterfinal at Rocket Arena in Cleveland played out much the same way. Except the Minutemen, who had lost to Miami twice previously – including a two-point decision on Jan. 27 – were able to outlast the RedHawks’ last-minute heroics through clutch free-throw shooting and a strong presence from Leonardo Bettiol. The 6-foot-9 forward from Roncade, Italy, scored a game-high 25 points.
Bettiol praised Miami following the game. “Going 31-0, no matter who you play, is extremely impressive,” he said. “They’ve had an amazing season.”
Fans of the Miami University men's basketball team watch on Thursday at Rocket Arena in Cleveland.
“It’s more about just putting ourselves in the best position, which I think we’ve done,” Miami Men’s Basketball Coach Travis Steele, the conference’s Coach of the Year, said. “Our guys have earned the right to play in the NCAA Tournament.”
They’ve also helped elevate the state of Miami athletics – and they are not alone. Steele praised several of his program’s RedHawk counterparts – women’s basketball, ice hockey, field hockey, softball, baseball, and football among them – for their high level of play.
“We’re a small part of it,” he said. “We’ve got a really, really proud tradition here at Miami. Great coaches – Charlie Coles, Darrell Hedric, Herb Sendek.
“It’s a great place, and hopefully we’re making it better, which I think we are. I think we’re helping that, trying to give the students an even better experience. It can be done anywhere, if everybody is pulling in the same direction. From the board, to President Crawford, David Sayler, our athletic director, to myself, to our players, it can happen.”
Miami’s season produced several highlights, including the team’s March 3 win over Toledo at Millett Hall to clinch the MAC regular-season title, followed by the RedHawks’ 110-108 overtime victory at Ohio University on March 6 to put them at 31-0.
“That’s the exciting thing about life. Life is all about experiences,” Steele said. “Playing in front of sold-out crowds, whether it’s been on the road or at home, our guys are going to have those memories for the rest of their lives. I’m very appreciative of our journey we’ve had so far.”
Established in 1809, Miami University is located in Oxford, Ohio, with regional campuses in Hamilton and Middletown, a learning center in West Chester, and a European study center in Luxembourg.