Miami (OH) Swim Team’s Speedo Stunt Rattles SMU During First Four NCAA Tournament Game
Miami (OH) Basketball Bare It All Defense!!! ... Swim Team Steals Show in First Four
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March Madness always delivers a moment -- this one just happened to be wearing Speedos.
Midway through the second half of Miami (Ohio)’s First Four matchup against SMU, what should’ve been a routine trip to the free-throw line turned into something else entirely. As SMU’s Corey Washington stepped up, a group of RedHawks fans -- clad in nothing but Speedos, swim caps and goggles -- stormed the aisle behind the basket.
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But it wasn’t random ... it's become a tradition.
Since late January, Miami’s men’s swimming and diving team has been showing up to RedHawks games dressed exactly like that ... forming one of the most bizarre -- and effective -- home-court advantages in college basketball. The unofficial fan club first made its debut on Jan. 27 during a tight win over UMass … and hasn’t looked back since.
And in Dayton, they brought the act to the national stage.
Washington missed the first free throw as the arena erupted ... clearly caught off guard by the unexpected wall of Speedos. He made the second, but the moment had already flipped -- and so did the energy in the building.
Miami (OH) rode that wave.
The RedHawks ripped off a run shortly after, eventually pulling away for an 89-79 win in what felt like a home game just 40 miles from campus.
“What really surprised me was the swim team, when they came out,” forward Antwone Woolfolk said postgame. “That was elite.”
It’s become part of the identity.
Miami entered the tournament at 31-1 but still carried plenty of doubt thanks to a weak schedule and no power-conference games. The committee barely let them in -- and stuck them in the First Four.
But between a red-heavy crowd, 16 made threes, and a group of Speedo-clad disruptors behind the basket, the RedHawks looked anything but fringe.
“This wasn’t an upset tonight, at all,” head coach Travis Steele said.
And now, the rest of the country is getting introduced ... not just to Miami (OH)’s resume, but to its fan section, too.
Up next: Tennessee.
If this run continues, don’t expect the Speedos to go anywhere.
