PVAMU, Miami (Ohio) Secure Spots in the Round of 64
Photos via Carson Caprella @FlyerNews
Gabriel Ward | Sports Editor
DAYTON, Ohio – The “First Four” in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament came to an end on Wednesday evening as No. 16 seeds Prairie View A&M and Lehigh faced off, with PVAMU taking it 67-55. Followed by one of the most highly anticipated games of the tournament, when No. 11 seed Miami (Ohio) defeated fellow No. 11 seed Southern Methodist University 89-79.
In the No. 16 seed matchup, the first half was deadlocked with neither team gaining a lead greater than eight points. For Lehigh, the story of the first half was their 3-point shooting. A team that shoots 35.9% from three went 3-for-13 in the first half. That lack of 3-point shooting was a large factor in the Mountain Hawks being held to only 29 first-half points.
The Panthers, however, were unable to take advantage of Lehigh’s poor shooting performance in the first half. Dontae Horne, PVAMU’s leading scorer, who averages 20.2 points per game, was held to just nine first-half points. The lack of a true scoring threat for the Panthers, mixed with poor 3-point shooting for the Mountain Hawks, led to the two teams entering the locker room at a score of 29-27, Lehigh ahead.
In the second half, Horne caught fire, going 7-for-13 en route to scoring 16 second-half points for the Panthers. Horne finished as the game’s leading scorer with 25 points. Cory Wells was also a key contributor for PVAMU. With 8:36 left in the game, Wells hit a jumper to put the Panthers up 10.
PVAMU dominated the final 8:10, and two free throws in the final seconds from Wells helped ice the game for the Panthers. PVAMU won 67-55, moving to 19-17 overall and advancing to the Round of 64. With the win, there are now three historically Black colleges and universities (PVAMU, Howard and Tennessee State) in the Round of 64 for the first time since 1994.
The Panthers will take on the No. 1 seed and defending national champion Florida in the first round at Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Florida, on Friday. The game is scheduled to tip off at 9:25 p.m. and can be seen on TNT.
The loss ends Lehigh’s season, and they finish with an 18-17 record.
In the second game of the day, Miami faced off with SMU in a matchup to see who would face Tennessee in the Round of 64.
In what felt like a home game for the RedHawks, the MAC regular-season champions struggled from three early on. With 9:19 left in the first half and Miami up 15-13, the RedHawks were shooting 3-for-13 from three and leaving most of the shots short. But those issues extended to the Mustangs, as they were not able to generate any offense as well.
Once they got over their rough start, Miami fed off the UD Arena crowd. After their 3-for-13 start, Miami went 7-for-12 from three the rest of the half. With 59 seconds left in the half, Brant Byers made a 3-pointer, giving the RedHawks an 11-point lead. SMU responded with a Jaron Pierre Jr. layup to make it a 43-34 Miami lead at the half.
The Mustangs started off the second half strong, and a 13-4 run fueled by six points from Jaden Toombs tied the game up at 47 with 14:51 remaining. SMU later took the lead on a Corey Washington dunk with 14:19 left, but that was the last time the Mustangs led for the rest of the game.
Miami’s second-half offense came from everywhere, with six players scoring at least five points in the half. Almar Atlason was key off the bench for the RedHawks, leading them in second-half scoring with 10 points.
Miami cruised in the second half, with the score never getting within two possessions in the final 11:26. The RedHawks went on to win 89-79, improving their record to 32-1 and advancing to the Round of 64, where they’ll face off with the No. 6 seed Tennessee on Friday at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia. The game is scheduled for 4:25 p.m. and will be aired on TBS.
The loss ends SMU’s season, finishing with a record of 20-14.