OXFORD, Ohio - The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team fell to Miami (Ohio) today (Dec. 7) by a score of 76-57.  The loss drops the Cardinals to 3-3 overall on the season.

SVSU came out strong in the opening minutes of the game, taking a fast four-point lead over the RedHawks and held a 9-2 advantage as sophomore guard Chris Webb (Saginaw, Mich./Arthur Hill HS) was successful on two free-throws with 15:57 remaining in the first half.  Webb would end the game with 10 points, one assist and pulled down one offensive rebound.

The RedHawks would knot the score at 17 on a free-throw, however the Cardinals would respond with a three-point shot by freshman forward Patrick O'Brien (Flint, Mich./Powers Catholic HS).  Miami would again tie the score at 23 and took a 28-25 lead over Saginaw Valley with 1:41 remaining in the first half.  The Cardinals entered the locker room trailing 33-27.

Miami would score the opening four points of the second half and held a 44-31 advantage over Saginaw Valley.  The RedHawks would extend their lead to 15 points over the Cardinals and would hold the advantage for the remainder of the contest, going onto victory 76-57.

Leading the way for the Cardinals was O'Brien, who was named Meijer "Player of the Game", ending the game with a team-high 14 points, five rebounds, while sophomore guard Michael Fugate (White Lake, Mich./Lakeland HS) added 10 points, three rebounds and had two steals. 

Saginaw Valley will return to action on Thursday (Dec. 9) when they host Wayne State in a GLIAC match-up.  Game time is scheduled for 6:00 pm.