No. 22 Miami Remains Undefeated; Akron Secures 12th Straight MAC Win
Friday’s Men’s Basketball Results
Akron 78, Ball State 65
No. 22 Miami 91, Bowling Green 77
Recaps courtesy of MAC Athletic Communications Departments
Akron 78, Ball State 65
Box Score
MUNCIE, Ind – Amani Lyles totaled a career-high 26 points and Tavari Johnson added 25 as the Akron men’s basketball team knocked off the Ball State Cardinals 78-65 on the road Friday.
The Zips recorded their 12th consecutive conference victory with the win over Ball State.
Lyles and Johnson’s stellar scoring performances led the Zips (22-5, 13-1) in the contest. Lyles tacked on eight rebounds and Johnson added six rebounds and six assists. Eric Mahaffey helped out with seven points and six rebounds while Evan Mahaffey recorded six points, five rebounds and five assists.
Johnson moved up to 19th on the all-time scoring list, and now has 1,268 career-points as a Zip. He also moved into a tie for 7th for single season assists with 141 this season.
Akron utilized great ball movement in Friday’s game, piling up 17 assists on 29 made field goals. Johnson’s six assists paced the Zips and Evan Mahaffey also added five assists of his own.
Akron forced 14 Ball State turnovers in Friday’s game. The Zips turned those takeaways into 14 points on the other end of the floor. Sharron Young led the way individually with two steals.
After falling behind 30-28, Akron went on a 7-0 run with 4:17 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Johnson, to take a 35-30 lead. The Zips then lost some of that lead, but still entered halftime with a 40-36 advantage. Akron did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 24 of its 40 points close to the basket.
Following the intermission, Akron kept widening that lead, expanding it to 54-48 before going on a 9-0 run to grow the lead to 63-48 with 9:49 to go in the contest. The Cardinals narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Zips still cruised the rest of the way for the 78-65 win. Akron capitalized on seven Ball State turnovers in the period, collecting 10 points off those turnovers.
The Zips return to James A. Rhodes Arena on Tuesday, February 24, to host Buffalo for a 7 p.m. start.
No. 22 Miami 91, Bowling Green 77
Box Score
OXFORD, Ohio– Luke Skaljac poured in a career-high 24 points and No. 22/23 Miami led for more than 36 minutes en route to a 91-77 victory over Bowling Green Friday in front of a crowd of 10,127 at Millett Hall.
Eian Elmer added 21 points and career-high five steals for the RedHawks, who move to 27-0 (14-0 MAC) and extend the best start to a season in conference history. Peter Suder and Antwone Woolfolk chipped in 10 points apiece to help Miami to its 30th consecutive home win. Javontae Campbell led the Falcons (16-12, 7-8 MAC) with 24 points.
A midrange jump shot and a pull-up three from Suder gave the RedHawks an early 8-5 advantage. Skaljac added a triple from the right wing and a shot near the free-throw line to hold the edge over the Falcons at 13-11. A Brant Byers layup through contact and another Suder crossover that led to a jump shot made it a 19-18 ball game in favor of Miami. Skaljac’s second deep shot of the night, as well an alley-oop layup by Justin Kirby, and a shot off the glass from Woolfolk gave the RedHawks momentum at 26-21 after the first 10 minutes of play.
A pair of traditional three-point plays from Suder and Skaljac gave Miami its first double-digit lead of the night at 34-23. The RedHawks continued to find their rhythm, as they took a 40-24 lead thanks to yet another three from Skaljac and a Byers floater plus the foul. Elmer buried a three to end the scoring in the first half and send Miami into the break ahead 45-30.
Skaljac opened the second half of play with his fourth shot from behind the arc. Elmer used a push shot from the paint, and Kirby tipped in a missed shot to remain in control at 52-37. Skaljac dished the ball to Woolfolk under the basket for a dunk and went on to find Kirby flying to the rim for a layup. Elmer knocked down a shot from the right corner to fend off the Falcons 59-44. Bowling Green managed to close within 10 points at 59-51 before Almar Atlason, Skaljac and Elmer each sank a shot from beyond the arc to deter Bowling Green’s comeback at 72-59 with 6:43 remaining.
Trey Perry got in on the action with two free throws and a shot from distance to lead 79-62. Elmer made back-to-back triples to put the game out of reach at 85-64 with three minutes remaining, and Miami went on to close out a 14-point victory.
Miami is 14-0 in conference play for the first time in program history. Miami has matched the record of 15 straight home wins over the course of one season that was originally set in the 2024-25 season.
The RedHawks are tied with Duke for the longest home winning streak in the nation at 30 consecutive wins.
Miami extended the program record for most wins in a season to 27 (previously: 25 last season). Skaljac has scored in double figures in each of his last nine contests and reached the 20-point mark for the first time in his career.
Miami made 13 three-pointers, matching the team’s highest total in conference play; Skaljac and Elmer each drained five. The RedHawks honored their senior class before the game.
Miami prepares for a two-game road trip, heading to Eastern Michigan on Tuesday, Feb. 24 at 6:30 p.m. and then visiting Western Michigan on Friday, Feb. 27 at 6 p.m. on CBSSN.
