Miami was discussed, debated and analyzed in seemingly each way possible as to its tournament worthiness.
All the RedHawks needed to do was point at the zero in the loss column as to why they should be in the tournament.
When they take the floor for the 9:10 p.m tip Wednesday against SMU in the First Four, Miami players and coaches don’t feel the need to prove themselves any further.
But they know others like them are lending their support.
“We feel like we’re carrying a lot of the mid-major on our back right now,” Miami head coach Travis Steele said. “We got an at-large bid, right? So we need to capitalize not just for Miami, but for all the other mid-major basketball because there’s a lot of good teams.”
Steele and his players said Wednesday they have avoided most of the outside noise about their team. Steele said he’s happy Miami is at least being talked about.
“I don’t ask a lot from some of the people that had opinions on our team for advice, so why should we listen to them now?” he said.
Miami was one of three mid-major programs that received at-large bids — along with Saint Louis and Saint Mary’s (CA) — in this year’s field of 68.
Akron received the Mid American Conference’s auto-bid, marking the first time since 1999 the league has two tournament teams. Miami beat them in the regular season. Wright State is the only other team in the field Miami has played.
Using KenPom.com rankings, SMU will be the second top-125 team the RedHawks face this season.
“I definitely see it as a game where we can quiet some noise that’s been around our team the entire year,” Eian Elmer said. “But like Luke [Skaljac] said, honestly, we’re just trying to win, survive and advance at this point.”
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Peter Suder, Miami’s leading scorer at 14.6 points per game, acknowledged the Mustangs will likely have an athletic and height advantage against the RedHawks. He said the same issues that hurt them in the MAC tournament — primarily rebounding — will pop up again Wednesday without learning from that game.
Skaljac said Tuesday how the loss against UMass also “humbled” the RedHawks. It also unintendedly provided a mental refresh after completing the regular season grind.
Suder and Skaljac said they still watched the rest of the MAC tournament, but Elmer got away from basketball for a bit and Brant Byers said he played golf.
SMU head coach Andy Enfield knows how it’s like to be the little guy getting the attention.
Enfield created a Cinderella in 2013 with upstart Florida Gulf Coast, better remembered as “Dunk City”, which made the Sweet 16.
He said he recognizes how at most neutral site tournament venues fans already root for the underdog, and he hopes Miami is able to have the home court advantage.
“That’s what March Madness is all about, to give the non-power conference teams an opportunity, and Miami has that tomorrow against us,” he said.
“I think once you started to dive into who you play, we’re really impressed by Miami. To go 31-0, how incredible is that? They deserve to be here.”
The RedHawks are in for the first time since 2007 under Charlie Coles, which Steele said he hopes is “smiling down on us” with Miami being back in the tournament.
Miami earned its bid. It learned during the season how to play through the extra media attention.
The RedHawks are ready for its opportunity Wednesday.
“This is a huge reward for us, but again, we’re not satisfied, obviously, just to be here,” Steele said. “We want to advance. That’s the goal.”
The winner travels to Philadelphia to play six-seeded Tennessee at 4:25 p.m. Friday.
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