By Mark Schmetzer
Enquirer contributor

If Wednesday night was Miami's last look at Ohio University strongman Brandon Hunter, the RedHawks won't complain. Hunter, a Withrow graduate, was the focal point of a dominating Bobcat inside attack that led Ohio to a 64-56 win over Miami before the RedHawks largest home crowd of the season, 5,830, at Millett Hall. Hunter led both teams with 21 points and 12 rebounds to push his nation-leading total of double-doubles to 21.

"He had a monster game," Ohio coach Tim O'Shea said. "He's playing a monster game right now. He was a level above everybody else on the floor. He was like an NBA player going against college kids."

"I think if you're going to think like an NBA player, you've got to play like it," the 6-foot-7 Hunter said. "You don't just talk about it."

The loss, Miami's second in a row, dropped the RedHawks to 13-13 overall and 11-6 in the Mid-American Conference, leaving MU in a tie with Kent State for first place in the MAC East Division. Ohio is 12-14, 8-9.

The RedHawks stayed alive in the race for one of the top three seeds in the MAC tournament, which would earn a first-round bye and automatic trip to Cleveland for the quarterfinals. Miami is tied with Kent State and Northern Illinois for second place behind Central Michigan in the overall conference standings. Miami plays at Marshall Saturday.

The Bobcats shot a season-best 64.7 percent from the field, which also was the highest allowed by Miami this season. The RedHawks were leading the MAC in field-goal percentage defense going into the game, but Ohio made 17 of 21 shots from inside the 3-point line.

"This was a very efficient game," O'Shea said. "This was our best game of the year on the road so far."

Miami was just 8-for-26 from inside the arc. The RedHawks' close-range shooting problems helped Ohio lead by as many as 12 points in the first half. The RedHawks missed all 11 of their shots from inside the 3-point line in the first half, including five by sophomore forward Danny Horace and three by Chet Mason.

"We understood where their cuts were coming, and we were stepping out on their shooters," O'Shea said.

"They did a great job defensively," said Miami junior guard Juby Johnson, who led the RedHawks with 17 points. "They were sagging back, and we weren't moving well without the ball."

Horace added 11 points and nine rebounds in his first game back after a two-game suspension for taking part in an altercation during Miami's game at Buffalo Feb. 22.

Ohio	M	FG	Att	FT	Att	R	A	F	TO	TP
Halbert	38	3	6	2	3	0	2	1	1	9
Esterkamp	39	4	6	6	6	3	0	3	4	16
Hunter	38	7	11	7	8	12	3	3	2	21
Stephens	36	4	5	0	0	0	2	0	1	9
Harris	27	27	1	3	0	3	0	5	2	3
Kiekow	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	2
King	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Bridgewater	40	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
Barrett	12	2	2	0	1	0	0	2	1	4
Totals	200	22	34	15	18	20	7	16	11	64

Team rebounds: 2.

Miami	M	FG	Att	FT	Att	R	A	F	TO	TP
Reed	7	0	1	1	2	2	1	0	0	1
Horace	36	4	14	1	2	9	1	3	3	11
Hausfeld	28	3	6	1	2	3	1	5	0	10
Mason	32	3	9	4	4	4	0	3	3	10
Johnson	39	5	12	4	5	1	1	3	2	17
Jameson	9	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	0
Drake	10	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	0
Williams	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Seals	21	0	2	0	0	2	3	4	1	0
Vandersluis	30	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
Schenke	12	2	3	2	2	0	0	1	0	7
Hatcher	0+	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
Totals	200	17	47	13	17	26	9	20	11	56

Team rebounds: 3.

Ohio	30	34	-64
Miami	20	36	-56

Attendance-5,830. 3-point goals-Ohio 5-13 (Halbert 1-3, Esterkamp 2-4, Hunter 0-1, Stephens 1-2, Harris 1-3); Miami 9-21 (Horace 2-4, Hausfeld 3-5, Mason 0-1, Johnson 3-5, Seals 0-1). Technical fouls-None. Officials-Fogarty, Herring, Montgomery.