
BUFFALO, NY -- The second time around was a different story for Blake Hamilton and the Buffalo Bulls, who defeated Miami 71-58 Saturday at Alumni Arena.
Hamilton registered just five points when the RedHawks nipped UB, 75-74, in Oxford back on Jan. 24. He was good for a game-high 23 points in the second meeting, hitting 5 of 7 3-point attempts along the way.
“He shot the . . .
While the Bulls connected on 20.7 percent of their threes in the first meeting, they were good on 39.1 percent (9 of 23) Saturday.
Overall, the hosts hit 26 of 56 from the field (46.4%). Miami made 23 of 61 (37.7%) attempts overall and went 5 of 19 ((26.3%) on 3-point tries.
Junior Rod Mills hit both his treys and connected on 7 of 9 from the field for 16 points. But he was one of just two RedHawks reaching double figures. Michael Weathers led the way with 19 points before fouling out with just over a minute to play.
Buffalo had three players in double figures. Joining Hamilton were sophomore guard Dontay Caruthers (12) and senior forward Willie Conner (11). C.J. Massinburg, who scored 20 points Tuesday night, was held to nine points against MU, breaking a string of seven straight contests in double figures.
It was the sixth straight win for Buffalo (15-12, 9-5 MAC), allowing the Bulls to remain tied with Ohio for the MAC’s second-best conference mark. Miami, which remained winless on the road this season, fell to 10-17 overall, 3-11 MAC).
The RedHawks held two very brief leads in Saturday’s matchup against Buffalo. Logan McLane, a key piece of Miami’s offense in recent games, opened scoring with a bucket. That, however, accounted for two of six points on the day for the junior.
Caruthers hit a free throw at the other end to kick off an 8-2 Buffalo run and the Bulls remained in front until Jake Wright nailed a triple from the corner with 3:03 left in first half. That put Miami in front 24-22.
Once again, however, Buffalo responded at the other end. This time it was Willie Conner hitting a three. Hamilton followed with his own triple, and Conner converted two free throws to end an 8-0 Bulls run that left the hosts in front 30-24 at the break.
Buffalo had led MU by eight points at intermission in the first meeting, only to see Miami pull out a win. This time, Buffalo put the RedHawks away by outscoring them 41-34 over the final 20 minutes.
A Perkins three at 12:33 gave the Bulls a double digit lead at 47-35. Buffalo maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way, leading by as many as 17 points on two occasions and finishing with a comfortable 13-point advantage.
NEXT:
Buffalo hosts Kent State Tuesday. Miami is home against rival Ohio. Both games begin at 7 p.m. ET.