Miami (Ohio) dipped, ducked and dodged losses throughout a perfect regular season that fittingly culminated in the program sweating out an overtime road victory against rival Ohio last Saturday.
They may be the RedHawks, but they’ve felt like some kind of cat with nine lives. The college basketball world has become accustomed to their comebacks.
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So much so that it was shocking Thursday when another didn’t arrive in the final minutes of a MAC tournament quarterfinal matchup with UMass that No. 20 Miami opened as a 6.5-point favorite.
After going 31-0 in the regular season, including 18-0 in MAC play, head coach Travis Steele’s top-seeded RedHawks (31-1, 18-0 MAC) were handed a stunning 87-83 loss by the eighth-seeded Minutemen (17-15, 7-11).
Suddenly, the auto bid is no longer Miami’s to ride to the NCAA tournament. Cue the debate about whether the RedHawks — who are outside the top 70 in adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, per KenPom — deserve to make the dance as an at-large team.
And if they earn a spot in the 68-team field, how far can they go? Even the oddsmakers are showing their doubt already. Despite its gaudy record, Miami has 1,000-1 odds to win the NCAA tournament, according to BetMGM.
This story is being updated.