The Battle of the Bricks features the two most anticipated regular-season games of the season for Ohio (16-13, 10-6 Mid-American Conference) and Miami (21-8, 12-4 MAC) fans. In the first matchup, Ohio lost what it believed to be a very winnable game in Oxford. In the rematch, the Bobcats left no question, winning 75-66 in The Convo in front of 7,891 fans.
“Nothing better than a rival game to have a crowd like this,” Ohio coach Jeff Boals said. “This is what this game is supposed to be like.”
Although Ohio spent nearly 30 minutes of the game ahead of Miami, the win wasn’t earned without adversity. Early on, Ohio found itself in a 12-4 hole, with Miami knocking down big shots and playing with a ton of energy defensively. Sophomore Eian Elmer was an early catalyst for the RedHawks, cashing two 3-pointers for his team’s first 6 points.
Ohio responded in turn, as Miami’s 8-point lead it took in the first five minutes would be its largest of the game. Redshirt sophomore AJ Brown was making big plays on both ends before going down with an injury that rendered him out for the rest of the game.
In his absence, Ohio turned to senior bigs, AJ Clayton and Vic Searls, to play rare stretches alongside one another, which Ohio was able to capitalize on. Clayton, in his seventh and final appearance against the RedHawks, scored a game-high 20 points, while Searls pitched in 13 points and seven rebounds off the bench.
“(Clayton) was huge,” Boals said. “He played confident … and when AJ Brown went down, we were playing two bigs, which we haven’t done a whole lot, but those guys did a good job together.”
The last matchup against Miami in Millett Hall, Ohio was without Clayton, which Boals stated was the biggest difference in the pair of outcomes. Alongside that, however, Ohio was able to get everything out of its depth in the Battle’s second round.
With Brown out for the last 28 minutes and freshman starter Elijah Elliott not feeling his best after throwing up in the locker room at halftime, Ohio looked to Searls and the rest of the bench to come up with big minutes.
“I feel like I’ve always had it in me,” Searls said. “I just needed it to come out during a game, and it finally did.”
Alongside Searls, juniors Elmore James and Ajay Sheldon, who have made up Ohio’s core three reserves for most of the season, pitched in impressive performances. James had 12 points on four-of-seven shooting, while Sheldon was a team-high +14 in his 20 minutes played.
“I just try to … make all the winning plays the team may need,” James said. “Whether it be scoring, diving on the floor, getting a stop, anything like that. We had a great crowd behind us, I just felt like anything was possible.”
The effort from Ohio’s entire roster led to the home team growing its lead to double digits in the second half and keeping it there for a large portion of the remaining game. Ohio battled in the paint for easy baskets and forced errors on Miami.
“I thought tonight we did a good job of disrupting them … to cause 17 turnovers,” Boals said. “That’s a lot for them, and that’s what we have to do because their offense is so good.”
As clutch time rolled around, with Ohio up just a couple scores, it was James and Searls who accounted for 8 consecutive points in the final minutes to secure the lead.
The win pushes Ohio to third in the MAC, continuing its battle with Toledo to determine which half of the bracket it ends up in come Tournament time. Although unlikely, with the win over Miami, Ohio could finish as high as second with games against Eastern Michigan and Toledo left to finish the season.
