Miami Seeded Fourth

March 5, 2001

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The University of Miami enters the 2001 AT&T BIG EAST Championship as the fourth seed out of the East Division. Miami will face Pittsburgh, seeded fifth out of the West Division, at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 7 at Madison Square Garden.

UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI HURRICANES
16-11, 8-8 BIG EAST – East Division Fourth Seed
2001 AT&T BIG EAST Championship
March 7-10, 2001
Madison Square Garden (19,763) – New York, NY
ESPN, ESPN2, Hurricane Radio Network

AT&T BIG EAST CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHUPS:
First Round – Wednesday, March 7
No. 4W West Virginia vs.No. 5E Villanova (ESPN) Noon
No. 3E St. John’s vs. No. 6W Seton Hall (ESPN) 2:00 pm
No. 4E MIAMI vs. No. 5W Pittsburgh (ESPN) 7:00 pm
No. 3W Syracuse vs. No. 6E Connecticut (ESPN) 9:00 pm

Second Round – Thursday, March 8
No. 1E Boston College vs. W4/E5 winner (ESPN2) Noon
No. 2W Georgetown vs. E3/W6 winner (ESPN) 2:00 pm
No. 1W Notre Dame vs. E4/W5 winner (ESPN2) 7:00 pm
No. 2E Providence vs. W3/E6 winner (ESPN) 9:00 pm

Semifinals – Friday, March 9
Thursday afternoon winners (ESPN) 7:00 pm
Thursday evening winners (ESPN) 9:00 pm

Finals – Saturday, March 10
Championship Game (ESPN) 8:00 pm

UM IN THE BIG EAST TOURNAMENT:
Miami enters its 10th BIG EAST Championship as the No. 4 seed from the East Division. Miami is 5-9 all-time in BIG EAST Tournament competition.

FIRST ROUND OPPONENT:
Miami will face Pittsburgh, the fifth-seed out of the West Division, in the opening round of the AT&T BIG EAST Championship beginning Wednesday, March 7 at 7 p.m. at Madison Square Garden.

Pittsburgh enters the BIG EAST Tournament with a record of 15-12, 7-9 in the BIG EAST, following a 70-51 win over Virginia Tech in its regular-season finale. The win marked the third in the Panthers’ last four games.

Greer, a preseason first-team All-BIG EAST selection, leads the team in scoring at 16.5 points per game. He ranks second on the squad in rebounding at 7.6 rebounds per game. Greer is the lone Panther averaging in double-figures.

Center Isaac Hawkins, who is averaging 9.6 points per game, is the team’s leading rebounder at 7.8 rebounds per contest.

THE SERIES:
Miami and Pittsburgh meet for the 30th time with the Hurricanes leading the all-time series 15-14. The two have met 17 times in BIG EAST regular-season play with Pittsburgh holding a 9-8 advantage. Miami and Pittsburgh also met during the 1992 BIG EAST Tournament with Hurricanes coming away with an 83-71 win.

The Hurricanes have won seven of the last 10 meetings although Pittsburgh defeated Miami, 62-51, earlier this season at Fitzgerald Field House.

A HURRICANE WIN WOULD:
***Improve Miami’s overall record to 17-11.

***Mark the Hurricanes’ third straight win.

***Be Miami’s seventh win in its last nine games.

***Mark Miami’s third consecutive opening game victory at the BIG EAST Championship.

LAST TIME AGAINST PITTSBURGH
January 3, 2001
Fitzgerald Field House, Pittsburgh, PA
Brandin Knight poured in 21 points to lead Pittsburgh to a 62-51 win over the University of Miami in the BIG EAST opener for both schools at Fitzgerald Field House in Pittsburgh, PA.

Darius Rice led the Hurricanes with 13 points. Marcus Barnes added 11 points off the bench for Miami.

Miami entered the contest forcing an average of 21 turnovers per game while scoring 22.5 points per game off turnovers. Miami, however, scored just nine points off 12 Pittsburgh turnovers.

Pittsburgh, which led 31-26 at the half, opened up a 42-32 lead following a three-point basket from Knight at the 16:53 mark.

Miami battled back and pulled to within three (50-47) after Rice connected on two free throws with 4:42 left. Pittsburgh, which shot 11-21 (.524) from the floor in the second-half, responded with a 6-0 run to push the lead back up to nine with 2:16 to play.

WINNING WAYS:
With its 73-68 win over West Virginia on February 28, the University of Miami clinched its seventh consecutive winning season. The last time Miami recorded at least seven straight winning seasons was the 1968-69 campaign when the `Canes registered their 10th straight winning season.

TV/RADIO COVERAGE:
Miami’s opening round game is being broadcast on ESPN. Mike Tirico is handling the play-by-play with Len Elmore adding analysis. The game can be heard on the Hurricane Radio Network (WQAM – 560 AM). Marc Vandermeer and Joe Zagacki are calling the action. The game can also be heard over the internet at the official website for Hurricane athletics – www.hurricanesports.com.

ON PERRY CLARK:
Miami head coach Perry Clark was named the Hurricanes’ head basketball coach on on July 6, 2000. Prior to taking the UM job Clark spent 11 seasons at Tulane where compiled a 185-145 (.561) record, had six 20-win seasons, seven postseason appearances (3 NCAA, 4 NIT) and won the Metro Conference championship in 1992. He was the 1992 National Coach of the Year and a two-time Metro Conference Coach of the Year (1991, 1992). Last season Clark finished 20-11 and captured the Conference USA National Division crown. With Miami’s win over West Virginia on February 28, Clark registered his 200th career victory. Clark’s career record stands at 201-156 (.563) including a 16-11 record this season.

DID YOU KNOW?:
The University of Miami has registered a 36-14 (.720) conference mark since the 1998-99 season. The Hurricanes’ record is the best in the BIG EAST over the last three seasons.

LATE SEASON HEAT WAVE:
Over the last three seasons Miami has played well in the month of February registering a 20-3 (.870) record. Miami went 7-1 in the month of February last season while going 8-0 in 1998-99. The Hurricanes went 5-2 in the month of February this season.

JOHN OF ALL TRADES:
Junior John Salmons (6-7, 200) is arguably the most versatile player in the BIG EAST Conference. Salmons has played every position at Miami except center and is currently the only BIG EAST player to rank among the BIG EAST leaders (conference games only) in scoring (17th – 14.0 ppg), rebounding (17th – 6.3 rpg), assists (9th – 4.38 apg), steals (9th – 1.94 spg), free throw percentage (9th – .824) and assist-to-turnover ratio (11th – 1.43 ratio).

ROAD WARRIORS:
Since the 1998-99 season, Miami is 18-7 in BIG EAST road games. The 18-7 mark is the best record among BIG EAST schools over that period. Miami, which was 8-1 in BIG EAST road games in 1998-99, was 7-1 in conference road games last season. Miami went 3-5 this season on the road. The Hurricanes have won 19 of their last 26 BIG EAST road games dating back to the 1997-98 season.

VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS:
UM has won its last three games against ranked teams and is 3-2 against ranked opponents this season. The Hurricanes are 15-16 versus ranked opponents since 1996-97 and have defeated at least one ranked team in each of the last seven seasons. Miami is 24-81 (.229) all-time against ranked teams including a 21-67 (.239) record since the rebirth of the program in 1985.

RECORD SETTING NIGHTS FOR RICE:
Freshman forward Darius Rice recorded 35 points in the Hurricanes’ win over Central Florida (12-9-00) setting a Miami freshman single-game scoring record. Rice broke the old mark of 30 set by Tito Horford on February 25, 1987.

On January 10, 2001 vs. Virginia Tech, Rice hit seven three-point field goals establishing a new UM freshman record. Rice totalled 31 points vs. the Hokies becoming the first player in UM history to record two 30-point scoring games as a frosh.

In his debut against Florida Atlantic on November 18, Rice poured in a game-high 26 points marking the most by a freshman in a season-opener.Rice has now recorded three of the top eight freshman scoring totals in UM history.

HURRICANES TIE WINS RECORD:
Over the last four seasons the Hurricanes have registered a 80-39 (.672) overall record. The 80 wins ties the school-record for wins over a four-year period matching the 1959-63 teams (80-28) and later equalled by the 1996-00 teams (80-41).

WORKING OVERTIME:
Miami has played at least one overtime contest in each of the last three seasons. UM has amassed a 6-4 record (including tournament games) in BIG EAST overtime contests (4-3 at home). The ‘Canes, who have never had more than three overtime games in any season (3-0 in 1986-87 and 0-3 in 1990-91), own a 22-21 overall record in overtime contests during their history (4-4 in double-overtime games and a 18-17 mark in single-overtime contests). Miami is 6-4 in overtime games since 1995. Below is a list of UM’s overtime games since 1990:

BARNES STEPPING UP:
Miami freshman Marcus Barnes has stepped up his game in BIG EAST play. Barnes, who averaged 3.6 points per game in 11 non-conference games, ranks fourth on the team in scoring in conference games (9.8 ppg). In the Hurricanes’ last 16 games Barnes has scored in double-figures seven times including three 20-point games.

MIAMI vs. NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS:
Since becoming the 10th member of The BIG EAST Conference beginning with the 1991-92 season, the Hurricanes have compiled a 63-34 (.649) record against non-conference opponents, including a 45-13 mark (.776) at the Miami Arena.

MIAMI DOMINATES IN THE ARENA:
In 11 seasons at the Miami Arena the Hurricanes have compiled a 127-65 (.661) overall record, including a 12-3 mark this season. One of Miami’s home losses this season was at the National Car Rental Center in Sunrise, FL. UM has posted a 69-19 (.784) home record since 1994. UM is 38-14 (.731) in its last 52 BIG EAST home games dating back to the 1995-96 season.

NO DAY AT THE BEACH:
Miami’s 77-74 win over No. 15 Connecticut on January 20 marked the seventh consecutive season that the Hurricanes have defeated a ranked opponent in the Miami Arena. Miami is 2-0 this season against ranked teams at Miami Arena having also defeated No. 22 Seton Hall, 72-66, on Feb. 1.