Hurricanes Open BIG EAST Play Wednesday

Jan. 4, 2000

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – West Virginia enters tonight’s contest with a 7-3 record following a74-50 win over James Madison on December 31. The win marked the fourthstraight for the Mountaineers. During the four game win streak West Virginiahas shot 114-of-226 (.504) from the floor as the team. The Mountaineers havebeen led this season by senior forward Marcus Goree. Goree, a preseasonsecond-team All-BIG EAST selection, leads the team in scoring (13.7 ppg),rebounding (9.1 rpg), blocks (3.6 bpg) and steals (1.6 spg).

THE SERIES:
Miami and West Virginia meet for the ninth time with theMountaineers leading the all-time series 5-3. Miami has won two straightagainst the Mountaineers including a 64-55 win in Morgantown, WV on January16 of last season. The Hurricanes are 2-2 all-time at home against WestVirginia including a 2-1 record at the Miami Arena. The Mountaineers lastvisited Miami Arena on February 28, 1998 with the Hurricanes coming awaywith a 70-66 win.

Probable Hurricane Starters

Probable Mountaineer Starters

UP NEXT:
Following tonight’s game the Hurricanes return to action on January8 against No. 7 Syracuse starting at noon at the Miami Arena. The Hurricaneswill then hit the road for three straight games at Seton Hall (Jan. 11),Georgetown (Jan. 15) and Villanova (Jan. 17).

FOR OPENERS:
Tonight’s game marks the BIG EAST opener for both schools. Miami haswon its last two BIG EAST openers including a 77-64 win over Boston Collegelast season.

TV/RADIO COVERAGE:
Tonight’s game is being produced by ESPN Regional Televisionand is being televised in Miami by SportsChannel Florida. John Sanders ishandling the play-by-play duties with Bob Wenzel providing in-depthanalysis.

The game will also be broadcast on the Hurricane Radio Network (WQAM- 560 AM). Marc Vandermeer will provide the play-by-play with Joe Zagackiadding analysis.

The game is being broadcast in Spanish on WACC (830 AM). Jerry delCastillo (paly-by-play) and Pepe Campos (analysis) will call the action.

ON THE COACHES:
Leonard Hamilton, in his 10th season at Miami and 14th as acollegiate head coach, has brought the University of Miami men’s basketballprogram in to the national spotlight. The 1998-99 BIG EAST Conference Coachof the Year, Hamilton has guided the Hurricanes to four postseasonappearances in the last five seasons including back-to-back NCAA Tournamentappearances in 1998 and 1999.

Last season Hamilton led Miami to a 23-7 record and a No. 10national ranking by the Associated Press. The 20-win season marked the firstfor Miami since the 1964-65 season while the AP ranking was the first sincethe 1959-60 season. Prior to his arrival at UM, Hamilton spent four seasonsat Oklahoma State where he led the Cowboys to their first back-to-backpostseason berths in 36 years. Hamilton’s record at UM is 128-141 (.476)while his career mark stands at 184-204 (.474).

West Virginia head coach Gale Catlett is in his 22nd season with theMountaineers. His record at WVU is 407-238 (.631) while his 27 seasonoverall record stands at 533-282 (.654).

A WIN TONIGHT WOULD:

• Improve Miami’s record this season to 8-5.
• Be Miami’s third consecutive victory.
• Mark the third straight season the Hurricanes’ have won their BIG EASTOpener.
• Improve Miami’s BIG EAST home record to 34-12 (.739) since joining theleague in 1991.
• Be Miami’s third straight win over West Virginia.

LAST TIME AGAINST WEST VIRGINIA:

Miami 64, West Virginia 55
January 16, 1999
WVU Coliseum, Morgantown, WV

Tim James recorded his second consecutive double-double with 18points and 10 rebounds to lead the University of Miami to a 64-55 conferencevictory in Morgantown, West Virginia. Marcus Goree and Lionel Armstead ledWest Virginia with 13 points apiece.

The Hurricanes also received 15 points from center Mario Bland, 11from forward Johnny Hemsley and a career-high 13 points from freshman JohnSalmons.

Miami, which won for the first time at WVU Coliseum, improved to 5-1in conference play tying the best start in school history. Miami also opened3-0 on the road in BIG EAST play for the first time joining the conferencein 1991.

The Hurricanes used a tough man-to-man defense to stifle theMountaineers. West Virginia shot just 36.8 percent from the floor whileElton Scott, the Mountaineer’s leading scorer at 16.7 points per game, washeld to just three points on 1-10 shooting.

MIAMI HURRICANES

WEST VIRGINIA

Officials: Ted Valentine, John Hughes
Technical fouls: Miami Hurricanes-None. West Virginia-None.
Attendance: 9261

MIAMI DOMINATES IN THE ARENA:
This year marks the 11th season that Miami has called the MiamiArena home. The ‘Canes have compiled an 111-59 (.653) overall record at theArena, including a 4-1 mark this season. UM has posted a 62-17 (.785) homerecord since 1994. UM is 33-12 (.733) in its last 45 BIG EAST home gamesdating back to the 1994-95 season.

Miami Arena Record Last Four Plus Seasons:

Top 5 BIG EAST Home Winning Percentages (1994-1999.)

Overall:

Conference Games Only:

“STARTING” TO MAKE AN IMPACT:
Miami freshman Leroy Hurd has stepped up his play since entering thestarting lineup the last three games for the Hurricanes. Hurd, who isaveraging 6.4 points and 2.8 rebounds on the season, has averaged 10.0points and 3.3 rebounds in the Hurricanes’ last three games while shooting12-of-20 (.600) from the field, including 2-of-3 (.667) from three-pointrange.

WINNING WAYS:
Miami’s 23-7 record last season marked its fifth consecutive winningseason. The last time Miami recorded at least five straight winning seasonswas the 1968-69 campaign when the ‘Canes registered their 10th straightwinning season.

MIAMI vs. NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS:
Since becoming the 10th member of The BIG EAST Conference beginningwith the 1991-92 season, the Hurricanes have compiled a 54-29 (.651) recordagainst non-conference opponents, including a 40-12 mark (.769) at the MiamiArena.

SUCCESS IN THE SUNSHINE STATE:
Entering the 1999-2000 season the Hurricanes are the only team inthe state of Florida to register a winning record in each of the last fiveseasons. The Hurricanes’ 87-57 (.604) mark since the 1994-95 season is thetop winning percentage and most victories among the state’s 11 Division Iprograms.

VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS:
The Hurricanes’ 73-71 win over No. 2 Connecticut at Gampel Pavilionmarked the third time last season that Miami knocked off a ranked opponenton the road. Miami was 4-3 against ranked teams last season including a 3-1mark against ranked teams on the road.

Miami Victories Over Ranked Teams:

PLAYING SPOILER:
Miami’s win over No. 10 St. John’s last season marked the fifthconsecutive season that the Hurricanes have defeated a ranked opponent inthe Miami Arena. In their last eight contests against ranked teams at theMiami Arena the Hurricanes have posted a 5-3 record.

GETTING IT DONE AT BOTH ENDS:
Miami ranked 21st in the nation in field goal percentage and 13th inthe nation in field goal percentage defense. Miami joins Duke, Maryland,College of Charleston, Kentucky, Utah, and North Carolina as the onlyschools to rank nationally in both categories. Additionally, the Hurricanesled the BIG EAST in both categories.

THE BUILDING BLOCKS:
Seniors Mario Bland, Johnny Hemsley and Vernon Jennings have been anintegral part of the Hurricanes’ accent into the national spotlight. Duringtheir first three seasons at Miami the three have led the Hurricanes to a57-30 (.655) record, three consecutive winning season, and three straightpostseason appearances including NCAA Tournament bids in 1998 and 1999.Miami’s NCAA Tournament bid in 1998 marked the school’s first since 1960.

Additionally, Miami’s 57 wins are the most in a three year periodsince UM won 57 games from 1963-66 while its .655 winning percentage is thehighest since Miami posted a 52-26 (.667) record from 1964-67.

Should Miami earn a post season bid in 1999-2000, the trio wouldbecome the first Hurricanes to reach the post season in four consecutiveseasons.

HEMSLEY A NAISMITH CANDIDATE:
Johnny Hemsley has been selected as one of 30 preseason candidatesfor the 1999-2000 Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award. Thecandidates were selected by a vote of the Board of Selectors comprised ofleading basketball coaches, journalists and basketball analysts.

MAKING ROAD HISTORY:
With its 73-71 win over Connecticut last season at Gampel Pavilion,Miami became the first school in BIG EAST history to defeat Connecticut,Syracuse, St. John’s and Georgetown on the road in the same season.

ROAD WARRIORS:
Last season Miami registered a 12-4 record (2-1 at neutral sites)when away from home last season. Miami was 8-1 in BIG EAST road games and10-3 on the road during the regular season. The 10 road wins were the mostsince 1959-60. Miami is 1-1 on the road this season.

MIAMI BACK IN THE DANCE, AGAIN:
Miami’s selection to the 1999 NCAA Championship marked theHurricanes second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. Prior to Miami’sNCAA tournament berth in 1998 the Hurricanes had received only one bid tothe “Big Dance” and that was in 1960. Last season the Hurricanes were seededNo. 2 in the East Region marking the highest NCAA seed in school history.The Hurricanes’ 75-54 win over Lafayette in the opening round marked Miami’sfirst NCAA Tournament victory in school history. Miami has advanced topost-season play in four of the last five seasons.

DOUBLE-DOUBLES:
Against Hartford, Mario Bland recorded his third consecutivedouble-double and the tenth double-double of his career. Last season MarioBland ranked second on the team with five double-doubles. Bland recordedfour of those double-doubles in the final eight games of the season. MiamiHeat first round draft choice Tim James led Miami with 10 double-doubles.

1999-00 Hurricane Double-Doubles:

WORKING OVERTIME:
Miami’s game last season against Connecticut on Jan. 20 marked theHurricanes first overtime contest since a 76-68 victory over St. John’s inthe opening round of the 1997 BIG EAST Tournament. UM has amassed a 5-2record (including tournament games) in BIG EAST overtime contests (3-2 athome). Miami’s game against St. John’s on Feb. 20, 1996 is its onlydouble-overtime game in a BIG EAST contest since joining the league in the1991-92 season. The ‘Canes, who have never had more than three overtimegames in any season (3-0 in 1986-87 and 0-3 in 1990-91), own a 21-19 overallrecord in overtime contests during their history (4-3 in double-overtimegames and a 17-16 mark in single-overtime contests). UM has never played atriple-overtime game. Miami is 5-5 in overtime games under head coachLeonard Hamilton. Below is a list of UM’s overtime games under Hamilton:

ONLINE ALL THE TIME:
Check out the Hurricanes’ website at www.hurricanesports.com for allthe latest information on University of Miami athletics.

UM TICKETS ON SALE:
Single-game tickets for all University of Miami men’s basketballhome games at the Miami Arena are on sale at the Hecht Athletic CenterTicket Office on the UM campus, the Miami Arena, and through TicketMaster.

Sidecourt reserved seats are $13 and endcourt reserved seats are $10for each of Miami’s six non-conference games, not including Kentucky. Alltickets for the Kentucky game on Jan. 29 are $20 and include admission tothe Miami women’s contest against Connecticut immediately following themen’s game. Single game tickets for UM’s eight BIG EAST contests are $18 forsidecourt reserved and $15 for endcourt reserved. For the fourth straightseason a youth (17 and under) endcourt reserved ticket can be purchased for$7.

The Hurricane Ticket Office is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondaythrough Friday and 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays. For more information callthe UM Ticket Office at (305) 284-CANES in Dade or 1-800-GO-CANES.

1999-00 MISCELLANEOUS STATS

Double Figure Scoring Games

20-Point Scoring Games

Double Figure Rebound Games

Double Figure Assist Games

Double-Doubles

Dunks

HURRICANES END 1998-99 SEASON RANKED:
The University of Miami ended the season ranked 10th in the finalAssociated Press College Basketball Top-25 poll and 12th in the seasonending ESPN/USA Today Coaches Top-25 poll.

Prior to last season’s debut at No. 25 in the Jan. 18 AssociatedPress poll Miami had not been ranked in the Associated Press poll since theend of the 1959-60 season when the Hurricanes were ranked No. 10 in thecountry. Miami reached a season-high of No. 9 in the nation in the March 1Associated Press poll. Miami’s highest ranking came on Mar. 1, 1960 when theHurricanes were ranked No. 8 by the Associated Press.

MIAMI IN THE PRESEASON POLLS:
The University of Miami men’s basketball team debuted at No. 25 inthe preseason Associated Press Top 25 college basketball poll and No. 24 inthe preseason ESPN/USA Today college basketball poll. The preseasonrankings are the first since the 1964-65 season when Miami opened theseason ranked 16th in the nation by United Press International. Prior tothis season Miami had never been ranked in the preseason by the AssociatedPress.

MIAMI IN THE 1999-00 POLLS:
For the first time this season Miami did not receive any votes ineither the Associated Press or ESPN/USA Today College Basketball polls.

UM in the 1999-00 polls:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
(1/3/00)

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Temple 219, Tulane 69, Wake Forest 56, St Johns 52,No Carolina St 50, Mississippi 38, Gonzaga 26, Oregon 25, Xavier 21, Ball St17, Wisconsin 14, Michigan 12, San Francisco 10, Iowa St 6, Villanova 6,Dayton 3, Kent 3, Louisville 3, SMU 3, Hawaii 2, Marshall 2, Vanderbilt 2.

ESPN/USA TODAY
(1/3/00)

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Wake Forest 73, LSU 55, No Carolina St 25, Marshall18, Wisconsin 18, Dayton 15, Tulane 14, St Johns 12, San Francisco 10,Hawaii 9, California 7, Mississippi 7, Oregon 7, Purdue 6, Ball St 6, Kent6, Colorado St 5, Louisville 5, Xavier 5, Gonzaga 4, Minnesota 4, Missouri4, Creighton 3, St Bonaventure 2, SE Missouri St 2, So Mississippi 1.

MOVING UP THE SCORING LIST:
With his three-point basket at 18:16 of the first-half againstBethune-Cookman, Johnny Hemsley became the 22nd player in Miami history toscore 1,000 career points. Against Quinnipiac, Hemsley scored 24 points toimprove his career total to 1,141. Hemsley needs 16 points to move pastKevin Presto (1985-89) into 15th place on UM’s career list.

UM Career Scoring List:

JENNINGS MOVES UP LADDER:
Vernon Jennings recorded six assists against Quinnipiac to improvehis career assist total to 364. Jennings currently ranks fourth on UM’scareer assist list and needs 20 to reach Thomas Hocker in third place.

JENNINGS WINS BIG EAST ASSIST TITLE:
Miami point guard Vernon Jennings won the 1998-99 BIG EAST assisttitle with an average of 6.06 per game in league play. Jennings handed out109 assists in 18 games setting a Miami BIG EAST single season record.Jennings is the second Hurricane in as many seasons to lead the league in astatistical category. Mario Bland led the league in field goal percentagelast season.

JENNINGS SETS ASSIST RECORD:
Vernon Jennings recorded a team-high eight assists against St.John’s (3-5-99) last season and in doing so set a Miami single season assistrecord. Jennings ended the season with 167 assists surpassing the old markof 154 set by Michael Gardner in 1992-93.

BOMBS AWAY:
Senior Johnny Hemsley connected on 70 three-point baskets lastseason to improve his career total to 100. Hemsley is 19-66 (.288) fromthree-point range this season. Hemsley currently ranks fifth on Miami’sall-time career list.

HURRICANES HIT 100:
Miami defeated Bethune-Cookman 102-75 marking the second 100-pointscoring game for Miami in as many seasons. Last season Miami defeatedVillanova 103-82 marking the most points scored by a Hurricane team in a BIGEAST game.

OFFENSIVELY SPEAKING:
Miami shot a season-high 57.1 percent (36-63) against FloridaAtlantic marking the fourth time this season the Hurricanes have shot 50percent or better from the floor. Miami shot 54.1 percent (33-61) from thefloor against Bethune-Cookman (11-30-99), 51.4 percent (37-72) againstHartford (12-11-99) and 51.6 percent (32-62) against Illinois State(12-22-99).

Last season the Hurricanes shot over 50 percent from the floor on 12occasions. Miami shot 50 percent or better from the floor only five times in1997-98. Against Villanova (2-16-99) the Hurricanes shot a season high 60.6percent from the field. The percentage was the highest for the Hurricanessince connecting on 40-61 (.655) in a 107-98 win over Savannah State onMarch 2, 1989.

Miami 50 Percent Shooting Performances (since 1998)

EASY AS 1, 2, 3:
The Hurricanes have hit at least one three-point field goal in eachof the past 233 games, extending the school-record. Overall, the ‘Canes havehit at least one trey in 387 of its 388 games since the NCAA adopted thethree-point shot in 1986. The only game Miami has failed to hit athree-point field goal was against Howard University on Dec. 6, 1991 whenthe ‘Canes were 0-15 behind the three-point arc.

LOCKING UP:
In Miami’s win over Florida Atlantic, the Hurricanes held the Owlswithout a point over a 6:16 stretch of the first half marking the fourthtime this season that Hurricanes have held an opponent scoreless for five ormore minutes.

Last season Miami made a habit of holding opponents scoreless forlong stretches. Eight times last season the Hurricanes held an opponentscoreless for over five or more minutes.

1998-99

1999-00

MIAMI RANKS FOR THIRD STAIGHT SEASON:
Last season the Hurricanes ranked nationally in field goalpercentage defense for the third consecutive season. The University of Miamiended the season ranked 13th in the nation in field goal percentage defense(.384). In 1997-98 the University of Miami led the nation holding teams to37.9 percent shooting from the floor. In 1996-97 Miami held opponents to 38percent shooting from the field to rank sixth nationally.

POSTING GREAT NUMBERS:
The Hurricanes did a great job last season of controlling opponentscenters. Of the 30 games the Hurricanes played last season only fiveopponent centers managed to score in double figures while only one grabbed10 or more rebounds. Miami limited opponent’s centers to an average of 6.4points and 5.1 rebounds per game.

In the first 12 games this season the Hurricanes have held theopposition’s starting centers to a combined total of 63 points and 33rebounds, an average of 5.3 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. Miami hasallowed only one starting center this season to score in double-figures.

1998-99

1999-00

HEMSLEY ON PRESEASON FIRST TEAM:
University of Miami senior Johnny Hemsley was named to the preseasonAll-BIG EAST first team by a vote of the league’s coaches at the BIG EASTConference Men’s Basketball Media Day at the Grand Hyatt in New York.

1999-00 PRESEASON AWARDS

All-BIG EAST First Team
Khalid El-Amin, Connecticut
Johnny Hemsley, Miami
Troy Murphy, Notre Dame
Erick Barkley, St. John’s
Etan Thomas, Syracuse

All-BIG EAST Second Team
Kevin Freeman, Connecticut
Isaac Hawkins, Pittsburgh
Bootsy Thornton, St. John’s
Jason Hart, Syracuse
Marcus Goree, West Virginia

Player of the Year: Khalid El-Amin, Connecticut
Rookie of the Year: Ajou Deng, Connecticut

HURRICANES TABBED FOURTH:
The men’s basketball team was selected to finish fourth in theconference behind Connecticut, Syracuse, and St. John’s. Miami, whichreturns four starters from last season’s squad, received one first placevote.

1999-00 BIG EAST Coaches’ Preseason Poll

HEMSLEY NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Johnny Hemsley was named the BIG EAST Player of the Week threetimes last season. Hemsley won the award for the first time last season onDec. 21 following his career-high 24 point performance in Miami’s 76-55 winat Georgia State. Hemsley was named the BIG EAST Player of the Week for thesecond time on Jan. 4 following his career-high 35 point performance inMiami’s 64-63 win at Georgetown on Dec. 30. Hemsley’s third honor came onFeb. 22 when he was named BIG EAST Co-Player of the Week after averaging22.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in the Hurricanes to two victories. Hemsleyshared the honor with Providence forward Jamel Thomas.

SELECT COMPANY:
Entering the 1999-2000 season the Hurricanes are one of just threeBIG EAST schools to post a winning overall record each of the past fiveseasons. Joining the Hurricanes are Syracuse and Connecticut.

ON THE RISE:
Since the start of the 1994-95 season UM has compiled a 52-38 (.578)record in BIG EAST regular season games. Only Connecticut, Villanova, andSyracuse have more conference wins over that period.

Conference Records Since 1994-95:

HURRICANES TAKE HOME HARDWARE:
Last season University of Miami head basketball coach LeonardHamilton was named BIG EAST Coach of the Year, senior forward Tim James(Miami Northwestern) was named BIG EAST Co-Player of the Year and juniorguard Johnny Hemsley (Baltimore, MD) was named the league’s Most ImprovedPlayer last season by a vote of the conference coaches.

1998-99 BIG EAST AWARDS

BIG EAST Co-Players of the Year
Richard Hamilton, Connecticut
Tim James, Miami

BIG EAST Rookie of the Year
Troy Murphy, Notre Dame

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Etan Thomas, Syracuse

BIG EAST Most Improved Player
Johnny Hemsley, Miami

BIG EAST Coach of the Year
Leonard Hamilton, Miami

WINNING WAYS IN THE NCAA:
After a 10-4 mark last season, BIG EAST teams have compiled a 155-91record in the NCAA Tournament play. The .630 winning percentage is thesecond best in the nation amongst conferences. The ACC is first with a .670winning percentage.

LEAGUE SCHEDULE REDUCED TO 16 GAMES:
For the first since 1990-91, each BIG EAST team will play only 16regular season conference games. The league has played 18 conference gamessince 1991-92. The 16 game schedule offers schools more flexibility inscheduling. BIG EAST teams have a better opportunity to improve their RPI(ratings percentage index) rankings and the league’s representation in theNCAA Tournament. the reduction to a 16-game league schedule has eliminatedDecember play dates.

STARTING AGAIN:
Nearly every BIG EAST team returns a majority of its starters fromlast season. Three squads – Boston College, Georgetown and Syracuse – bringback all five starters from 1998-99.

BEATING THE BEST:
BIG EAST teams were 16-13 against opponents ranked in the AP polllast season giving the league the highest victory total and best record ofany conference in the nation.

A SWEEPING SUCCESS:
With their win over Rutgers in last season’s regular season finalethe Hurricanes completed their fourth series sweep of the season. Miami hasregistered 10 BIG EAST regular season two-game sweeps since joining theleague in the 1991-92 season. Miami has now recorded at least one seriessweep in each of the last five seasons. Below is a list of UM’s BIG EASTseries sweeps:

POWER SCHEDULE:
Miami’s schedule includes 11 schools that rank in the top-50all-time in terms of winning percentage in NCAA history. The BIG EASTConference alone has eight teams that rank in the top-50 all-time. Miamiwill play 14 of its 29 regular season games against schools that rank in thetop-50 all-time. Seven of those games will be played at Miami Arena. BIGEAST opponents in CAPS.

1999-00 BIG EAST STANDINGS
(games through Jan. 2)

THIS WEEK IN THE BIG EAST

Monday, January 3
Sacred Heart at Connecticut 7:00
PITTSBURGH at ST. JOHN’S 7:00

Tuesday, January 4
VILLANOVA at SETON HALL 7:30

Wednesday, January 5
GEORGETOWN at PROVIDENCE 7:00
NOTRE DAME at CONNECTICUT 7:30
RUTGERS at SYRACUSE 7:30
WEST VIRGINIA at MIAMI 8:00

Saturday, January 8
ST. JOHN’S at WEST VIRGINIA Noon
SETON HALL at GEORGETOWN Noon
SYRACUSE at MIAMI Noon
PROVIDENCE at BOSTON COLLEGE 12:30
CONNECTICUT at PITTSBURGH 8:00

Sunday, January 9
Villanova at Pennsylvania Noon

1999-00 MIAMI BIG EAST TEAM RANKINGS
(games through Jan. 2)

1999-00 INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS
(games through Jan. 2)