Kenny Hayes

Jan. 30, 2008

DeKALB, Ill.--Junior guard Kenny Hayes amassed 25 points and senior forward Tim Pollitz added 19 points to lead Miami University's men's basketball team to a road win at Northern Illinois University on Wednesday night, 66-51.

The win was Miami's first road win of the Mid-American Conference season and its first since defeating Illinois in overtime on Dec. 20. It boosted the RedHawks to 9-10 overall and 3-4 in MAC action, while dropping the Huskies to 5-14 overall and 2-5 in league action.

Junior center Tyler Dierkers tossed in the first bucket of the game at the 18:54 mark to give the RedHawks a 2-0 edge. The Huskies would never lead in the contest. NIU tied the game 2-2 and 4-4, but a Hayes go-ahead 3-pointer at the 17:02 mark in the first half gave Miami a 7-4 edge and a lead it would not relinquish.

Junior guard Eric Pollitz knocked down a 3-pointer at 11:11 to push the Miami advantage to eight points, 18-10, and a Hayes jumper with 5:26 remaining in the half again put the RedHawks up eight points, 20-12. NIU's Darion Anderson hit a jumper and a pair of free throws to cut the RedHawk lead to four points with 2:03 remaining, 20-16. A Tim Pollitz layup with 48 seconds left handed Miami a 22-16 lead heading into the half.

Miami put together a 13-3 surge to seize a 35-19 lead with 12:27 remaining. Tim Pollitz scored six points during the run, while Hayes chipped in five points. A Hayes 3-pointer at the 10-minute mark gave Miami a game-high 21-point lead, 43-22. Miami would hold 21-point leads at 45-24 and 47-26. Northern Illinois would get as close a 15 as Miami rolled to the 66-51 win. The RedHawks scored 44 second-half points and shot 57.1 percent from the field over the final 20 minutes of play.

Anderson led the Huskies with 16 points.

Miami continues a two-game road stretch when it travels to Ball State for a 2 p.m. game on Saturday, Feb. 2.