Miami Takes Home Hardware in Fort Myers: Recap & Takeaways
By: Jack Mueller
The Miami RedHawks added some hardware to their trophy cabinet to kick off the holiday weekend, taking home the Palms Division Championship as a part of the Fort Myers Tip-Off. Travis Steele’s team continued their strong start to the young season with wins over Siena and Mercer to take home the trophy.
The RedHawks opened their tournament run with an impressive 70-58 win over the Siena Saints on Monday morning. Miami jumped out to a 16-4 lead, which they were able to hold onto throughout the half, going into the break with a 11-point advantage, leading 32-21. They were even better offensively in the second half, scoring 38 points en route to a 70-58 win. Kam Craft and Peter Suder combined for 36 points, with Suder shooting 77% from the field. Eian Elmer continued to be a contributor everywhere on the floor, adding 15 points, three rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
The RedHawks had to fight to the very end in their 75-72 win over the Mercer Bears. Miami fell into an early five-point hole against the Bears, but nine points from Elmer and back to back threes from Craft and Luke Skaljac gave Miami a 25-19 lead with ten to play in the half. Miami outscored the Bears 8-3 over a four minute span leading into the final three minutes of the half, in which neither team could score. Mercer’s Brady Shoulders hit the final shot of the half to cut the RedHawks’ lead to five going into the break.
Miami went on a quick 8-0 run to open the second period, propelled by seven made free-throws, to give Steele’s team a double-digit advantage. The RedHawks’ were able to build a lead as large as 12 with six and a half minutes to go, but that lead was cut down to three just two minutes later. The Bears kept the game close in the final minute, drawing within three on multiple occasions, but Miami was able to convert their free throws down the stretch. Mekhi Cooper went 2/2 from the charity stripe with seven seconds left on the clock to take a five point advantage, and after an Alex Holt jumper for Mercer connected, the clock ran out, giving Miami a narrow victory.
The RedHawks have just under a week to enjoy the holidays and recoup before hosting Air Force at Millett Hall on Monday. The RedHawks will be hoping to build on their 4-2 record, their best start to a season since 2021.
What We Learned From the Fort Myers Games:
Defense will win Games
Miami’s defense came to play in Florida. Over two games, the RedHawks forced 32 turnovers (far above their season average of 13p/g), which they turned into 22 points. In stretches of Tuesday’s game, Miami excelled at preventing a Mercer team that was averaging 86 points per game (37th in DI) from being able to build any momentum and used that to pull away to a double digit lead.
The RedHawks had nineteen steals over the span of the tournament(!!!), forcing 12 alone in the championship game. Peter Suder and Eian Elmer combined for seven of them, and Antwoine Woolfolk registered his third straight game with a block (3 vs. Siena, 1 vs. Mercer). In Miami’s four wins this season, their defense has stepped up to get stops when they needed to. As the season progresses, that will need to become the norm, especially when this team can catch fire and build scoring runs seemingly out of nowhere. Miami has the depth and versatility to match up with most teams on their schedule, if they execute on the defensive end they will be tough for any team to beat.
Live by the Three, Die by the Three
Last season, the three ball was crucial for the RedHawks in some big wins (57% vs. CMU / 50% vs. Marshall/ 53% vs. BG), but was also ice-cold in some crushing losses (19% vs. Georgia St./ 25% vs Akron & Toledo). When Miami is hot from behind the three-point line, they’re offense looks as impressive as it ever has under Steele. In the wins against App. State (44% from three) and UMES (46%), those shots were a vital part of the teams success. When they’re not, it tends to lead to defeat. In 2023, the RedHawks shot 40% in their wins, compared to just 34% in their losses.
This week, they were less important, and the team was able to adapt their game plan to find alternative ways to get points. Eian Elmer shot 100% from inside the arc against Mercer (more on him in a second), and Woolfolk, Cooper and Craft combined for 37 points against the Bears, with just six coming on three-point shots. Of Peter Suder’s 34 points (92% on 2pt attempts) in Florida, just three came from behind the arc. If they're able to continue to do that, they become a much more versatile offensive unit than last year's team.
Transfers: Finding Their Roles
If you followed the RedHawks last season, you may begin to notice a theme with the players that depart the program and who is brought in to replace them. Miami’s leading scorer last season, Darweshi Hunter, was replaced with another high volume scorer in Kam Craft, who’s averaging over 16 points per game in the red and white. The Bryce Bultman-esque swiss-army knife? Peter Suder leads the team in assists while adding 13 points and four rebounds per game. Missing Anderson Mirambeaux’s interior presence? Don’t, Antwoine Woolfolk has stepped into that role and hasn’t missed a beat in his short Miami career, averaging nine points and seven rebounds a night.
None of these comparisons are “like-for-like”, as all three pairs of players are different and play basketball in different ways. That said, Steele has built an identity in Oxford, and it presents itself in the style of play that the RedHawks have played this year. The 2024-2025 season is still in its infancy, but by watching Miami, you can begin to see how they can be successful this year. A big part of any success that takes place at Millett Hall this season will be as a result of the play of the three transfers playing major minutes for the RedHawks so far this season.
Eian Elmer: Breakout Year?
If you listen to RiverfrontU’s weekly Miami-focused podcast “Red Brick Recap” (spoiler: you should), you’re probably sick of hearing about Eian Elmer, because it feels like we’re talking about his play every week. In our defense, there’s a good reason why. He's been absolutely crucial to the RedHawks so far this season. So far this season, Elmer’s production has nearly doubled in every major statistical category. His 14.8 points per game rank second, behind Craft, on 56% shooting from the field. It’s not just his scoring either. He leads the team with 13 steals, and is second in rebounds per game (5.3) and blocks (5).
Elmer showed flashes of what was to come this season in ‘23-’24, scoring 23 and 18 against Eastern Michigan and Ball State respectively, but so far this season his performances have been more consistent. He’s put up 12 or more points in every game this season since the opener (nine vs. App. State). The sophomore forward has well and truly laid claim to one of the starting spots for Miami. The sky's the limit for Elmer, and if he keeps playing the way he has, there is no reason that he cannot be in the conversation for an All-MAC selection come the end of the season.