Thursday, January 18, 2001
Marshall 72, Miami 68
RedHawks blow big lead on road
The Cincinnati Enquirer
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Another night, another tough Mid-American Conference loss for the Miami RedHawks.
Tamar Slay's 3-pointer with 25 seconds left helped lift Marshall to a 72-68 comeback victory over Miami on Wednesday night.
Miami, coming off a 62-60 overtime loss at Ohio, had a 16-0 run in the first half and led by 10 points at halftime.
But Marshall, which lost at Miami 71-54 earlier this month, rallied, primarily behind Slay, who scored a game-high 24 points.
“We just didn't play as well as we should have in the second half,” Miami coach Charlie Coles said. “Once they got the lead, we were able to come back (to tie the game). We had the ball with 40 seconds left and the score tied. We're struggling in the halfcourt big time. We've got to be able to score (in those situations).”
Miami tied the score three times down the stretch but never retook the lead.
Slay, the Mid-American Conference's leading scorer, hit six of 11 3-pointers. He also was a hero on defense, blocking two shots in the final minute.
After Jason Grunkemeyer sank two free throws with 2:15 left to make the score 68-68, Slay blocked a shot with 52 seconds left to set up his 3-pointer with 25 seconds remaining that gave Marshall a 71-68 lead.
He then blocked a 3-point attempt by Grunkemeyer in the closing seconds. Travis Young made a free throw with .6 seconds left to set the final score.
Junior-college transfer Latece Williams scored a career-high 20 points for Marshall (11-3, 5-1 MAC).
Grunkemeyer led Miami (6-10, 2-3 MAC) with 22 points. Mike Ensminger scored 14.
Miami shot a season-high 55 percent from the floor, including 69 percent in the first half for a 43-33 halftime lead.
The RedHawks now face four critical games in eight days.
The good news is they're all at home, beginning with a 7 p.m. game against Buffalo Saturday. Miami plays host to Western Michigan Monday, Akron Wednesday and Ball State Jan.27.
“We're going to try to get some rest and hope we play well Saturday,” Coles said. “We have two disappointing losses, and guys are expecting to win. To get a win, you have to get a win. We have to win that game and win it by playing.”
MIAMI (68)
fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
Johnson 24 0-2 1-2 1-5 1 4 1
Shorts 31 5-10 2-2 0-3 1 3 12
Ensminger 34 7-9 0-0 1-4 1 4 14
Grunkemeyer 36 8-14 2-2 0-1 6 4 22
Davis 40 3-6 2-2 0-4 5 3 9
Jameson 4 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Seals 16 1-3 1-2 1-3 0 0 4
Edwards 3 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 2
Allendorf 12 1-2 2-3 2-3 0 2 4
_______________________________________________
TOTALS 200 26-47 10-13 5-23 14 20 68
_______________________________________________
Percentages: FG-.553, FT-.769. 3-Point Goals:
6-14, .429 (Johnson 0-2, Grunkemeyer 4-7, Davis
1-3, Seals 1-2). Team rebounds: 2. Blocked shots:
4 (Seals 2, Davis, Shorts). Turnovers: 11
(Johnson 3, Davis 2, Seals 2, Shorts 2,
Allendorf, Grunkemeyer). Steals: 2 (Shorts 2).
MARSHALL (72)
fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
Vanhoose 35 3-6 6-9 5-12 1 4 12
Williams 37 7-8 6-6 3-6 0 1 20
Slay 40 8-17 2-2 2-4 2 1 24
Wright 8 0-2 0-0 0-0 1 2 0
Jackson 40 2-6 0-0 1-3 8 3 4
Young 25 2-12 5-6 1-4 0 2 10
Burgess 7 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Armpalu 8 0-0 2-2 0-1 0 1 2
_______________________________________________
TOTALS 200 22-53 21-25 12-30 12 14 72
_______________________________________________
Percentages: FG-.415, FT-.840. 3-Point Goals:
7-18, .389 (Slay 6-11, Wright 0-1, Jackson 0-1,
Young 1-5). Team rebounds: None. Blocked shots: 2
(Williams, Slay). Turnovers: 8 (Vanhoose 4, Slay
2, Armpalu, Jackson). Steals: 5 (Slay 3, Jackson,
Young).
__________________________________
Miami 43 25 - 68
Marshall 33 39 - 72
__________________________________
Technical fouls: None. A: 6,219. Officials: Dan
Fouser, Mike Roberts, Mark Masariu.
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Marshall 72, Miami 68