When the University of Florida Gators won the NCAA men\u2019s basketball championship on April 7, fans were met with a seven-month wait until the 2025-26 season began. In late August and early September, teams across the country announced their full schedules, giving supporters a glimpse at what can be expected come November.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While the Miami University RedHawks have announced their conference schedule, their non-conference schedule still awaits finalization, something that head coach Travis Steele said is a good problem to have.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cScheduling has been tougher this year,\u201d Steele said. \u201cWhen I first got here, there was a line from here in Oxford all the way to Cincinnati to play us, and now nobody will play us \u2026 We\u2019re significantly better. Everybody\u2019s using these analytical numbers to schedule now, and we\u2019re in this weird area where teams are told not to really play us, which has made it difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n
Scheduling for the RedHawks is more challenging primarily because of the program\u2019s success last season, Steele said. Miami finished its 2024-25 campaign at 25-9, its best record since 1998-99. The team made it all the way to the Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship, its first appearance since 2007, where it lost by two points<\/a> to the University of Akron Zips.\u00a0<\/p>\n Steele said the team celebrated its success in the spring, but the RedHawks quickly wiped their memories of last season in preparation for the new year, knowing that they can do more.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a big step forward from where we\u2019ve been,\u201d Steele said. \u201cI\u2019ve said this before, [we\u2019re] obsessed with trajectory and not necessarily the result. We had a good year, but we want more. How do we continue to grow? Where are we going from here?\u201d<\/p>\n Despite losing three players to the transfer portal<\/a>, Steele said Miami\u2019s retention is at an all-time high. Starters Eian Elmer, Peter Suder and Antwone Woolfolk all return, as well as standout players Evan Ipsaro and Brant Byers, who averaged 8.4 and 6.9 points, respectively.\u00a0<\/p>\n Similar to previous seasons, Miami relied on its young players in 2024-25. Byers and freshman guard Luke Skaljac averaged 17.6 and 13.9 minutes, respectively, and both played significant roles in the team\u2019s shooting success, especially from range.\u00a0<\/p>\n For Steele, having those players get that experience early on helped the team make it to Cleveland.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI said, \u2018Fellas, you\u2019re no longer freshmen,\u2019\u201d Steele said. \u201cOnce it got to league play, you\u2019ve played enough games, you played enough minutes. You\u2019re no longer a freshman; we need you to operate like a sophomore.\u201d<\/p>\n While Miami\u2019s non-conference slate hasn\u2019t been announced yet, the RedHawks will greet Old Dominion University at Millett Hall on Nov. 3 for the fall MAC-Sun Belt Conference (SBC) challenge.\u00a0<\/p>\n The RedHawks close out December and 2025 with their first two MAC opponents, both on the road. They first travel to Ball State University, whom they beat on the road as well as in their last home game last season, on Dec. 20. On the penultimate day of the year, they drive north to Bowling Green State University, whom they also beat once last year.<\/p>\n \n Enjoy what you’re reading? Early in 2026, Miami plays arguably its best conference opponent at Millett. The RedHawks will welcome Akron on Jan. 3 in a rematch of the 2024-25 MAC championship. The schedule doesn\u2019t get any easier, as Miami hits the road one week later to face the University of Toledo Rockets, who finished fourth in the conference last season.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think we\u2019re going to approach everything the exact same way,\u201d Byers said. \u201cWe have a process in the way we do things. But I think it\u2019s exciting to have specifically those two games early on in the year. We\u2019re going to see what we\u2019re all about as soon as conference play starts.\u201d<\/p>\n
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