The RedHawks led Eastern Illinois by 19 points, 51-32, with 17:40 left in the second half of Sunday’s finale of the three-team, round-robin Miami Classic before watching the lead dwindle to five points with 2:28 remaining in the game.
Miami regained momentum, closing the game with a 7-0 run sparked by Darweshi Hunter’s jump shot. Evan Ipsaro added four free throws and the RedHawks pulled away for a 76-64 win before an announced crowd of 1,063 at Millett Hall.
“It’s maturity,” coach Travis Steele said. “We’ve got to learn how to extend leads. We didn’t do much in the second half. I didn’t feel like it at the moment, but it’s great what we went through at the end of the game. It will help us.”
Ipsaro led four Miami players in double figures with 18 points, including 11-of-11 on free throws, as the RedHawks improved to 2-2 overall after losing their first two games.
“Once you get into a rhythm on free throws, it makes it much easier,” Ipsaro said.
Hunter finished with 16 points, hitting his first three field goal attempts, including two 3-pointers, and finishing 4-of-5 from the field and 6-of-6 on free throws.
Bryce Bultman and Mekhi Cooper each scored 11 points for Miami. Bultman was named the tournament Most Valuable Player. He scored 21 points in Miami’s 76-48 win over Coppin State in Friday’s Classic opener.
“This wasn’t your classic tournament, but we treated it as such,” Steele said. “We’ve got to get used to that around here.”
Eastern Illinois (2-4), which is located in Charleston, Ill., and competes in the Ohio Valley Conference, fell to 2-4 on the season.
Miami drew 29 fouls while being whistled for just 12 and went 31-of-39 on free throws.
“We didn’t shoot enough 3-pointers,” Steele said. “We shot a lot early. We shot 13 in the first half and only four in the second. We’re a good shooting team. We were driving relentlessly. We’ve got a bunch of contact seekers.”
Steele feels 3-pointers need to be a bigger weapon, especially with big men Anderson Mirambeaux and Reece Potter on the bench. The 7-foot-1 Potter probably could play now, but Steele wants to make sure the freshman is 100 percent. The second-year coach expects Mirambeaux, a burly 6-8 senior, to have put his academic issues behind him by early December.
Until then, a roster including six active freshmen makes Miami one of the youngest teams in the country.
“We’re starting to figure out our team a little bit,” Steele said. “They’ve got to get comfortable. We’re making adjustments.”
“We’re coming together as a team,” said Ipsaro the 6-foot point guard who joined Hunter on the all-tournament team. “We’re playing for one another. Hopefully, we can take this momentum and go beat St. Bonaventure.”
Taking advantage of 6-10 center Jermaine Hamlin’s foul trouble, Hunter scored 12 points in the first half as Miami jumped out to a 9-0 lead and led by as many as 18 points before settling for a 43-30 halftime lead. Ipsaro and 6-1 freshman guard Melkhi Cooper each added eight points before halftime.
Hamlin played the first 3:14 of the game before leaving and not coming back after drawing aa quick foul.
The Panthers outrebounded the RedHawks, 32-30, including 17-12, in the first half, but the advantage was offset Eastern Illinois’s 12 turnovers, leading to 19 Miami points. The RedHawks also were in the bonus less than six minutes into the game and were 13-of-15 from the line before halftime.
Miami is scheduled to play at St. Bonaventure on Saturday at 2 p.m. Miami’s next home game is scheduled for Nov. 28 at 7 p.m. against NCAA Division III Spalding University.
SATURDAY’S GAME
Miami at St. Bonaventure, 2 p.m., ESPN+, 980, 1450
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