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Raiders Unable to Finish-Off RedHawks in 56-55 Heartbreaker

By Mike Klingshirn
Oxford, OH - This game was for Wright State's taking. Unfortunately, finishing-off a basketball contest with just one made field goal and no free throws over the final 7 minutes, is not the formula for most winning efforts. That's how the Wright State Raiders closed-out the game against the Miami RedHawks at Millet Hall on Sunday afternoon.

December 14, 2009
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Photos � and Courtesy of
Tim G. Zechar

Post-game Audio

Troy Tabler comments

Brad Brownell comments

Charlie Coles comments

The Raiders (6-3), held a 52-45 lead over the RedHawks (3-7) with 7:12 to play, but were unable to finish the deal. The result was a heartbreaking 56-55 loss, on a driving lay-up by Miami's Kenny Hayes with 22 seconds to play. The Raiders had a chance to pull out the victory in the end, but Vaughn Duggins missed a jumper on a misdirection play that didn't work.

After the loss, a disappointed Wright State head coach Brad Brownell said "We might have been a little out-toughed at the end. Most good college games boil down to the last three minutes where both teams have chances to make plays, and somebody on each team rises up to make a play or two, and that becomes the difference in the game -- whether it's an offensive basket, a defensive stop, or a rebound. To Miami's credit, they played a little better than us, especially in the second half. That was the difference in the game."

Miami built a 12-10 lead 10 minutes into the game. Wright State then went on an 8-0 run over the next three minutes to take control at 18-12.

Miami whittled the lead down to 28-26. Following a missed jump shot by Cooper Land with 30 seconds remaining in the first stanza, the RedHawks grabbed the rebound and called time-out. They drew up a play to either tie the game or put them ahead at the half.

Instead, an unpredictable turn of events found the Raiders up by 7 heading into the locker room. With Miami running their offense, Darian Catharn stole the ball, and finished a lay-up with 16 seconds remaining to put WSU up 30-26. Five seconds later, Miami's Rodney Haddix turned the ball over, and Cooper Land drained a trey in transition at the buzzer, putting the Raiders on top 33-26 at the half.

With the Raiders leading 40-34, four minutes into the second half, Wright State's Troy Tabler caught fire. He scored his team's next 12 points, enabling them to maintain a 52-45 advantage with 7:12 left to be played.

Tabler was brilliant, connecting on 4-of-5 from behind the arc. He tallied 15 of the Raiders' 22 second half points. Miami had no answer for him. RedHawk guard Kenny Hayes pleaded to his coach "I can't stop him. What do you want me to do?" Hayes said "You give him (Tabler) a split second - he's got a quick trigger - the guy can shoot. He hit some tough shots from deep three."

"Tabler stole the show tonight,"
said Miami head coach Charlie Coles.
"He was the MVP of this game, that's
for sure. Wow -- did he put on a show."

From there, turnovers and missed shots contributed to a deep freeze for the Green and Gold. Miami eventually tied the score at 52 with 5:48 to play. Cory Cooperwood drained a trey at 3:49 for Wright State's final points, putting them back on top 55-52 at the 3:49 mark.

Miami drew to within 55-54 with 3:19 remaining. The Wright State defense was stellar, preventing the RedHawks from taking the lead on the next four consecutive possessions. Unfortunately, asking for a fifth straight stop was asking too much. Kenny Hayes hit a driving lay-up with 22 to play, giving the RedHawks their first lead since 10:21 of the first half. A Vaughn Duggins jumper at the buzzer was off of the mark, and the Raiders suffered a bitter defeat by the score of 56-55.

Troy Tabler led Wright State in scoring with 23 points on 8-of14 shooting. The rest of the team hit just 12 shots on 41 attempts. The Raiders outscored Miami 28-11 on points off of turnovers. WSU committed 12 turnovers - 6 by Duggins. Miami won the battle of the boards 30-29.

Adam Fletcher recorded his first ever double-double for Miami with 10 points and 13 rebounds.

The RedHawks went 12-of-18 from the free throw line, while WSU connected on all 8 of their attempts. The Raiders were whistled for 19 fouls to just 12 on Miami.

"We knew that it would be a back and forth game," said Brownell. "It was physical. It hurt that we didn't get to the free throw line in the second half, so we were required to make shots all of the time, instead of being able to stop a run with a free throws. We didn't make enough plays."

Next Games:

Wed. Dec. 16 at Mississippi State (ESPN2)
Sat. Dec. 19 Maryland Eastern Shore
Tues. Dec. 22 Arkansas - Little Rock
Mon. Dec. 28 Sam Houston State

All starting times are 7:00

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