Miami travels to The Convo tonight to renew the Battle of the Bricks - a rivalry in which two starters have little experience.
Freshman forward Reggie Keely and freshman guard D.J. Cooper have emerged as two of the Bobcats' most consistent performers this season. The pair combines to average more than 20 points and 10 rebounds per game, but is new to the rivalry with the RedHawks.
The freshmen, including forward Ivo Baltic who comes off the bench, have just one game against Miami under their belts: A 79-67 loss Jan. 16 in Oxford.
Cooper scored 22 points, but only went 3-for-9 from the field after halftime. Keely contributed just two points and two rebounds, as foul trouble limited him to 12 minutes.
Miami outscored Ohio 50-30 in the second half after the Bobcats led by eight at the break.
That first half gave us a lot of confidence
Keely said. Coming into this game we're going to try to bring that same kind of momentum and try to keep it throughout the whole game.
Tonight's contest creates a different atmosphere. It will be played in Athens, where Ohio (15-13, 5-8 Mid-American Conference) won the last three regular-season meetings with the RedHawks.
I expect there to be a lot of people coming out to the game to support Keely said. It's Green Fever so I'm ready for that first big
home
rivalry game.
Groce called last year's atmosphere terrific
and added that his team is ready for another shot at Miami.
It's always a big week when you get the opportunity to play a rivalry game
Groce said.
Junior guard Tommy Freeman is one of the oldest players on the team. He has played against Miami (12-15, 8-5 MAC) six times, including a loss that eliminated Ohio from the MAC tournament
in 2008.
It's a fun rivalry to be in
Freeman said. I think the O-Zone is ready for Miami to come here every year.
Freeman said he knows what to expect from Miami, adding he doesn't want to be swept by the RedHawks - something that hasn't happened to Ohio since the 2005-06 season.
To make sure that doesn't happen, some of the burden lies on the freshmen to step up in the big game,
Groce said.
We need both those guys to play their roles on our team at a high level (tonight) to give us our best chance
Groce said.
2
Sports
