MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich -- Visiting Miami held Central Michigan to 17 points under its season average on the way to a 70-61 win Tuesday at McGuirk Arena.
It was the second straight win for MU, which raised its record to 11-9 overall (4-3 MAC). The RedHawks impressed last Saturday against Ball State and led nearly the entire game in defeating CMU.
The Chippewas (13-7, 2-5 MAC) fell . . .
Per head coach Jack Owens' recent focus point, Miami continued its success at both ends of the court in the second stanza -- albeit stopping CMU sophomore guard Kevin McKay proved difficult. McKay scored 14 of Central's first 21 points after intermission, preventing the visitors from possibly turning things into a rout.
Miami was up by eight (56-48) after a McKay three at 8:20, and CMU spent the next six minutes chipping away. Cecil Williams' bucket at 2:24 pulled the hosts to within three at 62-59.
Isaiah Coleman-Lands answered for Miami nearly a minute later with the last of his four 3-pointers on the night. The freshman finished with 12 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Shawn Roundtree made it a two-possession game (65-61) with a pair of free throws. Miami, however, responded with one of the game's key plays. Point guard Darrian Ringo laced a bounce pass through traffic to senior Logan McLane cutting down the lane. He finished with a dunk that turned out to be the game's final field goal. MU added three free throws to complete scoring.
"The 40 minutes is what we've just been harping on," Miami head coach Jack Owens said. "I think the team is growing up. ... It was a good team effort and I'm just happy for the guys."
After registering 21 points in Saturday's win over Ball State, Ringo did not score a single point against CMU. Nonetheless, his ability to distribute the ball was once again on display as he contributed 10 assists. The junior is tied for third nationally, averaging 7.6 helpers per outing.
"He can beat you any kind of way," Owens said of Ringo. Tonight, "he set the table."
Nike Sibande led all scorers with 22 points, aided by a 4 for 4 performance beyond the arc. McLane had 13 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.
McKay's 17 topped Central Michigan. He connected on 7 of 10 from the field in 29 minutes after coming off the bench. Roundtree provided 15 points and Williams added 14.
Central Michigan was good on 23 of 61 (37.7%) from the field overall and 9 of 28 (32.1%) outside the arc. One of the nation's top free throw shooting teams went 6 of 10 from the charity stripe.
Miami hit 25 of 55 (45.5%) from the floor and 11 of 23 on treys. The RedHawks owned a 41-32 advantage on the boards, while Central committed just six turnovers to 10 for MU.
“There’s a lot of things that go into the game, but we go 9 for 28 from three, and they go 11 for 23,” CMU coach Keno Davis said. “I mean there’s the game right there.
“For us, I think we’re better in an up-tempo game where we’re getting more and more shots, but we’ve got to be able to win the half-court game as well. I credit (Miami) for being able to kind of control the tempo and not get rushed (against) what we were doing defensively too.”
NEXT:
Central Michigan hosts Kent State Saturday (4:30 p.m. ET). Miami is home against Eastern Michigan Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET).