“It felt good,” said Jovic, who also set a career-high with three made 3-pointers. “All my hard work is finally and slowly paying off. I just have to keep working hard and trusting myself and trusting my teammates to get me the ball.”
Sibande led Miami (11-17, 4-11 MAC East Division) to a whopping 44-31 rebounding advantage. Third-year sophomore guard Isaiah Coleman-Lands set a career high with five steals while leading the RedHawks to a season-high 11 thefts. The RedHawks led by as many as 24 points in the second half and never lost the double-digit lead they built by halftime while sending Central Michigan (13-15, 6-9 MAC West) to its seventh straight loss.
“That was a good team win,” said third-year coach Jack Owens, whose team had lost six of its previous seven games. “A lot of guys contributed. A lot of guys stepped up and played extremely well. A lot of guys played well after the slow start.”
Owens and Jovic credited Coleman-Lands with changing the chemistry when he came off the bench in the first five minutes. He finished with 13 points and seven assists in just under 35 minutes.
“The energy changed,” Jovic said. “Isaiah brought energy from the bench.”
The RedHawks will play two of their last three games at home, starting Saturday with a 3:30 p.m. game against East Division-leading Bowling Green (21-7, 12-3). The Falcons edged Miami, 78-76, at Bowling Green on Jan. 7.
That game will be Miami’s third in five days.
“It’s a quick turnaround,’ Owens said. “This time of year, you have to make things a little shorter – an hour-and-a-half film and practice. It’s like an NBA schedule. The guys like it. They’re playing games and not as much practice.”
“We’ve got to stay locked in and focused on the next game,” Jovic said.
The return of junior forward Dalonte Brown could help. Brown, who missed Miami’s previous three games, scored four points with two rebounds in 9-1/2 minutes while wearing a brace on his left knee.
“It was great to see him out there flying around,” Owens said. “He was a big part of the game.”
Miami has declared Saturday to be Darrell Hedric Day with several honors scheduled throughout the game for the Hall of Fame 14-year coach, who also spent 1994 as the university’s interim athletic director.
Miami went into Thursday’s game 12th in the overall standings of the 12-team MAC. The bottom four teams play first-round road games in the MAC Tournament, which is scheduled to start on March 9.
Thursday’s game was postponed from Jan. 28 due to a Miami coronavirus scare that proved to be unfounded. The RedHawks lost at Central Michigan, 93-82, in their conference opener on Jan. 4.
Miami missed its first six shots and needed 5:32 to sink its first field goal and fell behind, 13-4, but Coleman-Lands gave the RedHawks their first lead with a personal 8-0 run, making back-to-back 3-pointers and a layup after a steal for a 21-17 lead. Jovic made two 3-pointers and Sibande contributed five points to a 13-0 run that gave Miami a 36-23 run on the way to a 39-27 halftime lead.
The RedHawks outrebounded the Chippewas, 22-13, before halftime, led by Sibande’s six. The count included three offensive rebounds before Eli McNamara scored on a short jumper for a 38-27 lead with 1:18 left in the half.
“That was the extra-effort play we talk about,” Owens said. “We thought if they went small that we’d get some second-chance opportunities.”
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