Hurricanes Battle Notre Dame On Saturday

Feb. 25, 2000

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Notre Dame enters tonight’s game with a record of 16-11, 7-6 in theBIG EAST, following an 89-79 loss to Providence College on Wednesday.

The 16 wins this season are the most regular season victories forthe Notre Dame since 1989-90. That season, under the direction of head coachDigger Phelps, the Fighting Irish ended the regular season with a 16-12record before losing to Virginia in the opening round of the NCAATournament. The 1989-90 season marked the last NCAA Tournament berth for theFighting Irish.

Notre Dame has several quality wins this season including a 59-57victory at No. 6 Ohio State, a season sweep over defending National ChampionConnecticut, and an impressive 73-60 win over St. John’s.

The Fighting Irish are led by All-America candidate Troy Murphy. The6-10 sophomore forward has been named BIG EAST Player of the Week six timesthis season and currently leads the conference in scoring (23.4 ppg) andrebounding (10.6 rpg).

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 138-145 (.488)while his career mark stands at 194-208 (.483).

Notre Dame head coach Matt Doherty is in his first year as acollegiate head coach. Doherty joined the Fighting Irish following sevenseasons as an assistant under Roy Williams at Kansas.

THE SERIES:
Miami and Notre Dame face off for the 12th time overall and for thesecond time this season. The Fighting Irish lead the all-time series 6-5although Miami defeated Notre Dame 63-49 earlier this season at the JoyceCenter. Notre Dame is 3-2 on the road versus Miami including a 2-2 record atMiami Arena. Last season the Fighting Irish defeated UM 71-68 at MiamiArena.

UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME (16-11, 7-6)
atUNIVERSITY OF MIAMI (17-9, 10-3)
Saturday, February 26, 2000 — 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Miami Arena (15,388)
ESPN, WPOW (96.5 FM), WVUM (90.5 FM)

Probable Hurricane Starters

Probable Fighting Irish Starters

TV/RADIO COVERAGE:
Tonight’s game is being televised on ESPN. Dan Shulman is providingplay-by-play with Leo Rautins adding analysis. The game can be heard on theHurricane Radio Network (WPOW-96.5 FM). Marc Vandermeer (play-by-play) andJoe Zagacki (analysis) will call the action. The game can also be heard onthe UM student radio network (WVUM-90.5 FM).

UP NEXT:
Following tonight’s game the Hurricanes hit the road to facePittsburgh on Tuesday, February 29 at 7:30 p.m. The Hurricanes then returnhome for their regular season finale on March 5 vs. St. John’s at the MiamiArena. The game, which will tip-off at noon, will be the final home game forseniors Mario Bland, Johnny Hemsley and Vernon Jennings.

A WIN TONIGHT WOULD:

• Improve Miami’s record to 18-9, 11-3 in the BIG EAST.
• Be Miami’s ninth win in its last 10 conference games.
• Give Miami a season sweep over the Fighting Irish.

LAST TIME AGAINST NOTRE DAME

Miami 63, Notre Dame 49
January 25, 2000
Joyce Center, Notre Dame, IN

Johnny Hemsley scored 18 points and Miami held Notre Dame’s TroyMurphy, the BIG EAST’s leading scorer, to just 14 points as the Hurricanesbeat the Irish 63-49 at the Joyce Center.

Notre Dame trailed 38-25 with just under 16 minutes left before aMurphy dunk cut the lead to 38-31. But Murphy was hit with a technical foulfor hanging on the rim, and Hemsley converted both free throws to spark an8-0 run that pushed the lead to 46-31 with 10:33 left.

Notre Dame never threatened again, and Miami led by as many as 21.

The Hurricanes bottled up the inside, forcing Notre Dame to go toits outside shooting game, which never caught fire. Three days after settinga school record with 14 3-pointers in an 81-66 win over Pittsburgh, theIrish were just 5-of-22 from behind the 3-point arc and shot 32 percent(16-of-50) for the game.

John Salmons scored 10 points for the Hurricanes, who shot 21-of-45from the field and 17-of-18 from the foul line.Miami led 31-22 at halftime after holding the Irish to 8-of-23 shooting. TheHurricanes shot 50 percent (13-of-26).

MIAMI DOMINATES IN THE ARENA:
This year marks the 11th season that Miami has called the MiamiArena home. The ‘Canes have compiled a 113-62 (.646) overall record at theArena, including a 7-4 mark this season. UM has posted a 66-21 (.759) homerecord since 1994. UM is 37-14 (.725) in its last 50 BIG EAST home gamesdating back to the 1994-95 season.

Miami Home Record Last Four Plus Seasons:

Top 5 BIG EAST Home Winning Percentages (1994-Pres.):
(Games through February 20)

Overall:

Conference Games Only:

VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS:
Miami was 4-3 against ranked teams last season including a 3-1 markagainst ranked teams on the road. The Hurricanes are 10-12 versus rankedopponents since 1996-97 and have defeated at least one ranked team in eachof the last six seasons. Miami is 1-3 versus ranked teams this season.

Miami Victories Over Ranked Teams:

SALMONS STEPS UP:
Sophomore John Salmons has stepped up his production over the lastfour games. The 6-7 sophomore has scored in double-figures in each of thelast four games while shooting 16-32 (.500) from the field and 6-7 (.857)from the line. Salmons has also been a workhorse on the glass averaging 8.0rebounds per game.

THE BUILDING BLOCKS:
Seniors Mario Bland, Johnny Hemsley and Vernon Jennings have been anintegral part of the Hurricanes’ accent into the national spotlight. Now intheir fourth season at Miami the three have led the Hurricanes to a 74-39(.655) record, four 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 74 wins are the most in a four year periodsince UM won 80 games from 1962-66 while its .655 winning percentage is thehighest since Miami posted a 72-33 (.686) record from 1963-67.

With a post season bid in 1999-2000, the trio would become the firstHurricanes to reach the post season in four consecutive seasons.

ROAD WARRIORS:
Last season Miami registered a 10-3 road record. The 10 road winswere the most since 1959-60. Miami is 6-2 on the road this season includinga 5-1 road record in BIG EAST play. Miami was 8-1 in BIG EAST road gameslast season. Miami has won 14 of its last 16 BIG EAST road games dating backto the 1997-98 season.

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.

MAKING ROAD HISTORY – PART II:
With its 63-57 win over Connecticut on February 19, 2000, theUniversity of Miami became the first school to win consecutive games againstthe Huskies at Gampel Pavilion. Miami defeated Connecticut 73-71 in itsprevious trip to Storrs on February 20, 1999.

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.

Wins Over Ranked Teams at Miami Arena since 1994-95:

SAY CHEESE:
Tonight’s game marks the fourth appearance on ESPN for Miami thisseason and its 30th appearance overall. The Hurricanes are 2-1 on ESPN thisseason and are 11-18 all-time on the network. The Hurricanes are 20-31all-time on national television including a 3-2 mark this season.

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.

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.

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 54-30 (.643) recordagainst non-conference opponents, including a 40-13 mark (.755) 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.

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 Providence, John Salmons recorded his second double-doubleof the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds. The double-double was thesixth of the season for Miami. Mario Bland leads the Hurricanes with threedouble-doubles this season.

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 in seven weeks the University of Miami receivedvotes in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls. Miamireceived 15 points to rank 29th by the Associated Press and two points torank in a tie for 41st by the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ poll.

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. Later this season senior center Mario Blandscored a career-high 24 points against Boston College (1-22-00) to becamethe 23rd player in UM history to record 1,000 career points.

Hemsley ranks ninth on UM’s career scoring list while Bland is in18th place.

UM Career Scoring List:

JENNINGS MOVES UP LADDER:
Vernon Jennings recorded nine assists against West Virginia toimprove his career assist total to 456. Jennings ranks second on UM’s careerassists list and trails only Kevin Norris who handed out 493 assists from1994-98.

BOMBS AWAY:
Senior Johnny Hemsley has recorded 45 three-point baskets thisseason to improve his career total to 145. Hemsley currently ranks third onMiami’s all-time career list.

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.

Jennings has handed out 154 assists (6.3 apg) this season and is ontrack to break his own single season assist record. Jennings, who needs just14 more assists this season to surpass last season’s total, is on pace torecord 186 assists this season.

DEAD-EYE FROM THE LINE:
Miami is shooting a league best 75.4 percent from free throw linethis season. Miami’s five starters have combined to shoot 340-438 (.776)from the line while the starting backcourt of Johnny Hemsley and VernonJennings are shooting 142-177 (.802) from the charity stripe.

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 flooron 12 occasions. Miami shot 50 percent or better from the floor only fivetimes in 1997-98.

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 247 games, extending the school-record. Overall, the ‘Canes havehit at least one trey in 401 of its 402 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.

DEFENDING THE BIG EAST:
Through 13 conference games this season the Hurricanes rank No. 1 inscoring defense (57.2 ppg), field goal percentage defense (.378) andthree-point field goal percentage defense (.266).

LOCKING UP:
Over the last three seasons Miami has been one of the nation’sleaders in field goal percentage defense. Miami is holding opponents to 39.5percent shooting from the field this season and made a habit of holdingteams without a field goal for long stretches. This season the Hurricaneshave held teams without a field goal for five minutes or more a total of 24times while holding teams scoreless for five or more minutes seven times.

MAN OF STEAL:
Senior guard Vernon Jennings set a career-high with seven stealsagainst West Virginia (1-5-00). The seven steals rank as the second highestsingle game total in UM history and were the most since Jerome Scottrecorded nine steals against Florida International on March 4, 1991.Jennings currently has 179 career steals to rank third on UM’s career list.

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.

GETTING DEFENSIVE:
Over the last 11 games the Hurricanes have stepped up theirdefensive play holding opponents to just 218-of-550 (.362) shooting from thefloor. Miami has held seven of its last 11 opponents to under 40 percentshooting from the field. In addition, Miami’s perimeter defense has alsobeen strong holding its last 11 opponents to 50-of-192 (.260) fromthree-point range. Miami has also held its last 16 opponents to under 70points and an average of just 57.6 points per game.

Defensive Effort Over Last 10 Games:

POSTING GREAT NUMBERS:
This season the Hurricanes have held the opposition’s startingcenters to a combined total of 159 points and 118 rebounds, an average of6.1 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. Miami has allowed only six startingcenters this season to score in double-figures and only two to grab 10 ormore rebounds.

Of the 30 games the Hurricanes played last season only five opponentcenters managed to score in double figures while only one grabbed 10 or morerebounds. Miami limited opponent’s centers to an average of 6.4 points and5.1 rebounds per game.

1999-00

JENNINGS LOOKS TO REPEAT:
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 currently leads the conference in assists this seasonwith an average of 6.69 per game in league contests. Jennings is attemptingto become just the fourth player in BIG EAST history and the first sinceSherman Douglas (Syracuse) in 1988-89 to lead the conference in assists inback-to-back seasons. Douglas led the BIG EAST in assists for threestraight seasons from 1986-89. The only others to lead the BIG EAST inassists for two straight seasons are Dwayne “Pearl” Washington (Syracuse)from 1983-85 and Stewart Granger (Villanova) from 1980-82.

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

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 62-41 (.602)record in BIG EAST regular season games. Only Connecticut, Syracuse andVillanova have a better conference record over that period.

Conference Records Since 1994-95 (games thru 2-23-00):

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.

A SWEEPING SUCCESS:
With their win over West Virginia on February 22 the Hurricanescompleted their first series sweep of the season. Miami has registered 11BIG EAST regular season two-game sweeps since joining the league in the1991-92 season. Miami has now recorded at least one series sweep in each ofthe last six seasons. Below is a list of UM’s BIG EAST series 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.