CLEVELAND (Interstat) — The undefeated and top-seeded Miami (Ohio) Redhawks begin their pursuit of a Mid-American Conference tournament championship Thursday against the seed Massachusetts Minutemen at Rocket Arena.

Miami (Ohio) (31-0), the nation’s only remaining unbeaten team in Division I, enters the quarterfinal matchup having narrowly preserved its perfect season. The Redhawks needed overtime to edge Ohio 110-108 last Friday, led by a career-high 32 points from sophomore forward Eian Elmer.

The Redhawks, who won both regular-season meetings with UMass, are heavy favorites. They defeated the Minutemen 86-77 in Amherst on Feb. 17 and 86-84 in Oxford on Jan. 27.

Elmer, averaging 15.3 points, scored 11 in the February win. He is complemented by a balanced attack that saw Trey Perry score 21 and Brant Byers add 15 in the tense victory over Ohio.

Eighth-seeded Massachusetts (16-15) arrives with momentum after a 94-82 home win over Ohio on March 3. In that game, senior guard Marcus Banks erupted for 31 points, his best scoring output in over a month. Banks, averaging 16.2 points, will be a focal point for the Minutemen’s offense. Leonardo Bettiol added 17 points and Danny Carbuccia had 13 in the victory.

However, UMass has struggled for consistency, losing five of its last seven games prior to the Ohio win. Their season has been marked by close defeats, including three overtime losses in February.

The Redhawks’ defense, which allows just 67.8 points per game, will test a UMass team that averages 77.6. The Minutemen’s hope likely rests on an explosive offensive performance and containing Elmer’s inside presence.

The winner advances to Friday’s semifinal. The over/under is 162.

Tipoff is scheduled for approximately 12 p.m. EDT.