OXFORD – When it comes down to the final two weeks of conference play, any win is something to be
appreciated.
Although his team nearly blew a 15-point second half lead, Miami head coach Charlie Coles was happy to
express his appreciation following the RedHawks 84-77 win over Bowling Green Saturday at Millett Hall.
“We could count a lot of things that we didn’t do down the stretch, but I’m not going to do that,” said
Coles. “The fact that we got the victory today, I think, is important. How we got it, I don’t know if
that is as important. We backed in just a little, but you’re allowed to back in.”
While the RedHawks may have backed into their latest win, the Falcons might still be considered in
reverse. It was the fifth consecutive loss for a BG team that won six of its first eight conference
games. BG is now 12-17 overall and 7-7 in the MAC East.
The Falcons certainly didn’t lack for effort Saturday as they tried to pull out a victory in a building
where they last won in the 2001-02 season.
“Our guys didn’t quit today. We fell behind by 15 but our guys kept fighting to get it back to two,” BG
head coach Louis Orr said. “The biggest issue for us was our defense. Turnovers hurt us in a stretch as
well, as well as second-chance points.”
Miami led by 15 points following a Quinten Rollins steal and layup at 9:22. But the hosts got sloppy,
missing several layups (including two dunks) and free throws that might have allowed MU to pull away.
It was still a double digit lead (10 points) with 2:11 remaining. However, Bowling Green combined several
Miami miscues with their own good shooting to draw within a basket (79-77) with 38 seconds left. Miami
made 5-of-8 free throws the rest of the way, and BG missed all three field goal tries.
Offensively, the RedHawks biggest contributor was something of a surprise. Sophomore guard Orlando
Williams, who reached double figures just once in the previous four games, erupted for a career-high 26
points.
“The player of the game, as far as I was concerned, was Orlando Williams,” Coles said. “He’s been playing
bad (but) Orlando came out today, and he showed us … that you don’t have to worry about (him). He had
his best college game.”
“To me, that’s courage. You’ve been playing bad. The coaches are mumbling about you, and now you shoot
8-for-9 (from the field) and 5-for-6 from behind the three,” Coles continued. “We couldn’t have done it
without him.”
Overall, Miami hit 56 percent from the field while building up a 42-33 halftime lead. It dropped to 40.7
percent, including 2-of-7 (28.6 percent) behind the arc over the last 20 minutes.
Bowling Green connected on 48.1 percent from the floor before the break and dropped to 40.7 percent in
the second half. However, the Falcons’ late flurry of treys gave them 7-of-14 in the final period after
a 1-for-4 mark out of the gate.
A’uston Calhoun paced BG with 21 points. Dee Brown added 17 points and Scott Thomas netted 14.
“I think he was able to get his shots and he hung in there. He got to the free-throw line and that helped
him get going,” Orr said about Brown, who made some big shots late in the game.
Jordon Crawford, the 5-foot-6 sophomore, got the start at point-guard for the Falcons and played 39
minutes registering nine points and nine assists with only one turnover.
“For the third straight game, Jordon did a good job with his decision-making and in taking care of the
basketball,” Orr said.
NOTES: Miami is 15-14 overall and 10-4 in the MAC … Crawford has 28 assists in his last three games …
BG hosts Kent State Tuesday with tipoff at 7:30 p.m. with the game being televised on SportsTime Ohio.
MIAMI 84, BOWLING GREEN 77
BOWLING GREEN (12-17)
Thomas 5-9 3-4 14, Calhoun 8-18 2-5 21, Crawford 2-10 4-6 9, Brown 5-10 4-4 17, Oglesby 4-5 0-2 8, Kraus
0-0 0-0 0, Erger 0-0 0-0 0, Jakubowski 0-0 0-0 0, Sealey 0-0 0-0 0, McElroy 2-7 1-2 5, Dabney 1-1 1-2 3.
Totals 27-60 15-25 77.
MIAMI (15-14)
Mavunga 6-15 10-12 22, Winbush 4-13 7-8 16, Roberts 1-2 2-5 4, Williams 8-9 5-7 26, McHenry 0-3 0-0 0,
Sewell 0-0 0-0 0, Rollins 3-6 3-4 9, Harris 1-1 0-0 3, McGhee 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 25-52 27-36 84.
Halftime—Miami (Ohio) 42-33. 3-Point Goals—Bowling Green 8-18 (Brown 3-4, Calhoun 3-5, Thomas 1-4,
Crawford 1-5), Miami (Ohio) 7-17 (Williams 5-6, Harris 1-1, Winbush 1-6, Mavunga 0-1, McHenry 0-3).
Fouled Out—Calhoun. Rebounds—Bowling Green 32 (Calhoun 5), Miami (Ohio) 39 (Winbush 13). Assists—Bowling
Green 14 (Crawford 9), Miami (Ohio) 15 (Mavunga 6). Total Fouls—Bowling Green 23, Miami (Ohio) 19.
A—2,078.
