DaytonDailyNews.com

OXFORD — They might be the surprise team of the NCAA Tournament, but the Miami RedHawks know the drill.

As a No. 14 seed, it's never too early to start playing the underdog card.

"It's a good chance for us to surprise a lot of people," senior forward Nathan Peavy said Sunday night.

"We can expect not to be taken seriously," senior guard Doug Penno said.

"Obviously, we've got something to prove," junior forward Tim Pollitz said.

Miami, a team which spent most of the season struggling to make it past the .500 mark, has been paired with a heavyweight in the first round of this week's Midwest Regional in the 16th-ranked and third-seeded Oregon Ducks, the winner of the Pacific 10 Conference Tournament.

Miami (18-14) has faced some perennial powerhouses this season in Kentucky, Illinois and Michigan, but RedHawks coach Charlie Coles said none of them compares with Oregon.

"No, those guys are slow compared to (the Ducks)," he said. "They're explosive. We'll be tested. This will be the supreme test."

Oregon features a starting lineup in which all five players average more than 10 points per game, led by 6-foot senior guard Aaron Brooks (17.6 points).

Pollitz, the most valuable player of the Mid-American Conference Tournament, said he's glad to be heading to the Pacific Northwest.

"I actually wanted our team to go to the place that was the furthest away so it would be an experience," he said. "I just want to take it all in.

"Obviously, our win at the (MAC) championship game was a humongous experience, a life-lasting, one-of-a-kind experience," he added, referring to Penno's banked-in basket at the buzzer which gave Miami a stunning 53-52 victory over Akron.

Penno, who said he's "still a little high strung from last night," noted that Saturday's game against Akron mirrored the way Miami's season has progressed.

"(The game) started out tough and we had to fight back and hit a last-second shot to keep it going," Penno said, explaining that Miami also struggled early in its season, losing 10 of its first 15 games. "Now we are in the process of a final surge to keep the season going, and for some of us, our careers."

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2197 or pconrad@coxohio.com.