Miami (Ohio) Redhawks head coach Travis Steele interacts with players during the first half of an NCAA men’s basketball game between the Miami Redhawks and the Toledo Rockets at Millett Hall, Tuesday, March 3, 2026, in Oxford, Ohio. Leonardo Bettiol scored 25 points as UMass came from an 11-point deficit over the final eight minutes to stun previously undefeated Miami (Ohio), 87-83, in the Mid-American Conference semifinals last Thursday in Cleveland, Ohio.
Marcus Banks Jr. had 18 points and Jayden Ndjigue added 16 as the eighth-seeded Minutemen (17-15) advanced to the MAC semifinals in their first year in the conference.
Brant Byers had 17 points and Eian Elmer added 16 for top-seeded Miami (31-1). That means we’ll have to wait and see if they receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament if tickets are available Sunday night.
UMass won the game by dominating the paint, outscoring the RedHawks 54-30 in the paint and 23-8 in second-chance points. The Minutemen also outrebounded the RedHawks 41-24.
Just when Miami looked poised to put away the Minutemen by building an 11-point lead at 69-58, UMass responded with a 13-2 run. The Minutemen tied it on Ndjigue’s jumper with 4:47 remaining.
The rest of the game was back and forth. Luka Damjanac grabbed an offensive rebound and made a jumper to give UMass an 81-79 lead with 2:38 left.
The first half had a rough finish. It looked like the two teams would be tied at halftime when Peter Suder missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. But just before the buzzer sounded, Byers was called for an offensive foul, giving the Minutemen the ball under the Miami basket with 0.5 seconds remaining.
UMass guard K’Jei Parker threw the ball the length of the court without anyone touching it and Miami put the ball under its own basket with a chance to score. The RedHawks capitalized when Luke Skaljac made a perfect pass to Antwone Woolfolk who cut the basket for a layup at the buzzer and took a 39-37 Miami lead at halftime.
The Minutemen got into foul trouble early in the second half and the RedHawks went into the bonus with 12:04 remaining.
UMass closed within 56-52 on a Marcus Banks 3 with 11:44 remaining. But Miami responded with a 13-6 spurt, and Elmer’s base 3-pointer gave them a 69-58 lead with 8:33 left.
–Field level media
