Hurricanes Close Out Regular Season At Home

March 2, 2000

For tickets, call 1-800-GO-CANES or stop by the Hurricane Ticket office between 9:00-5:00, Monday-Friday.

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – St. John’s enters today’s game with a record of 21-6, 12-3 in theBIG EAST, following a 66-60 win over Seton Hall at Madison Square Garden onTuesday. Senior guard Bootsy Thornton led the way with 28 points and eightrebounds. Senior forward Lavor Postell added 12 points and nine reboundswhile another senior Chudney Gray, who started for a suspended ErickBarkley, added 13 points and seven assists.

St. John’s has won eight straight games and this week moved backinto the national rankings, No. 18 (Associated Press) and No. 21 (USAToday/ESPN), for the first time since January 24.

The Red Storm boast four double-figure scorers including preseasonfirst-team All-BIG EAST selection Erick Barkley. Barkley is averaging 16.7points, 4.5 rebounds and a league best 3.3 steals per game. Barkley isaveraging 18.2 points per game in BIG EAST play. St. John’s also looks toThornton who has led the team in scoring 10 times this season and isaveraging 15.2 points per game. Thorton averaged 25 points per game in St.John’s last two victories.

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 140-145 (.491)while his career mark stands at 196-208 (.485).

St. John’s head coach Mike Jarvis is in his second season with theRed Storm and 15 season overall. Jarvis’ record at St. John’s is 50-15(.769) while his overall record stands at 302-156 (.659).

#18/#21 ST. JOHN’S UNIVERSITY (21-6, 12-3)
atUNIVERSITY OF MIAMI (19-9, 12-3)
Sunday, March 5, 2000 — 12:00 p.m. (EST)
Miami Arena (15,388)
CBS, WAXY (790 AM), WVUM (90.5 FM)

Probable Hurricane Starters

Probable Red Storm Starters

THE SERIES:
Miami and St. John’s meet for the 20th time with the Red Stormleading the all-time series 10-9. Miami won both regular season meetingslast season including an 84-79 win at Miami Arena. The Hurricanes are 5-2all-time against St. John’s at Miami Arena. St. John’s and Miami last met insemifinals of the 1999 AT&T BIG EAST Championship with the Red Storm comingaway with a 62-59 win.

TV/RADIO COVERAGE:
Today’s game is being televised on CBS. Verne Lundquist is providingplay-by-play with Bill Raftery adding analysis. The game can also be heardon the Hurricane Radio Network (WAXY-790 AM). Marc Vandermeer (play-by-play)and Joe Zagacki (analysis) will call the action.

A WIN TODAY WOULD:

• Improve Miami’s record to 20-9, 13-3 in the BIG EAST.
• Be Miami’s 11th win in its last 12 conference games.
• MArk the sixth consecutive season Miami has defeated a ranked opponent atMiami Arena.

LAST TIME AGAINST ST. JOHN’S

No. 10 St. John’s 62, No. 9 Miami 59
March 5, 1999
AT&T BIG EAST Championship – Semifinal
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

Freshman Erick Barkley scored eight of his team’s final 10 pointsand made a key steal in the closing seconds as 10th-ranked St. John’sescaped with a 62-59 over No. 9 Miami in the semifinals of the BIG EASTConference tournament.

Barkley played the entire 40 minutes and finished with nine pointsand five assists. Ron Artest led the Red Storm with 18 points. Tim James ledthe Hurricanes with 25 points while Johnny Hemsley added 20 points.

Tim James scored 25 points and Johnny Hemsley added 20 for theHurricanes (23-5), who had a nine-game winning streak halted.

St. John’s nearly blew a 10 point lead with 4:39 to play. Miami hada chance to tie the game in the closing seconds but Hemsley was stripped byBarkley he tried to drive into the lane. After Barkley missed the second oftwo free throws, a 65-foot desperation heave by Hemsley bounced off theglass.

ST. JOHN’S

MIAMI HURRICANES

Officials: Ted Valentine, Mike Kitts, Donnee Gray
Technical fouls: St. John’s-None. Miami Hurricanes-None.
Attendance: 19,548

UP NEXT:
Following today’s game the Hurricanes hed to New York for the AT&TBIG EAST Championship, March 8-11, at Madison Square Garden.

SENIOR DAY:
Today’s game is the final home game of the season and last game atMiami for seniors Mario Bland, Johnny Hemsley and Vernon Jennings. Bland,Hemsley and Jennings have played an integral part of the Hurricanes’ ascentinto the national spotlight. Now in their fourth season with the Hurricanesthe three have led Miami to a 76-39 (.661) record, four consecutive winningseason, and three straight postseason appearances including NCAA Tournamentbids in 1998 and 1999. Miami’s NCAA Tournament bid in 1998 marked theschool’s first since 1960.

Additionally, Miami’s 76 wins are the most in a four year periodsince UM won 80 games from 1962-66 while its .661 winning percentage is thehighest since Miami posted a 72-33 (.686) record from 1963-67.

Over the last four seasons Miami’s three seniors have led theHurricanes to a 47-22 (.681) record tying St. John’s and Connecticut for thebest conference mark over that period.

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

The three will be honored in a ceremony prior to the game.

MIAMI DOMINATES IN THE ARENA:
This year marks the 11th season that Miami has called the MiamiArena home. The ‘Canes have compiled a 114-62 (.646) overall record at theArena, including a 8-4 mark this season. UM has posted a 67-21 (.759) homerecord since 1994. UM is 38-14 (.725) in its last 52 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 26)

Overall:

Conference Games Only:

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:

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:

ROAD WARRIORS:
Over the last two seasons Miami is 15-2 in BIG EAST road games. The15-2 mark is the best among BIG EAST schools over the last two seasons.Miami, which was 8-1 in BIG EAST road games last season, is 7-1 inconference road games this season. Additionally, Miami has won 16 of itslast 18 BIG EAST road games dating back to the 1997-98 season.

Top BIG EAST Road Records Over Last Two Seasons:
(games through 3/1/00)

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.

WINNING WAYS:
With its 63-57 win over Connecticut on February 19, the Universityof Miami clinched its six consecutive winning season. The last time Miamirecorded at least six straight winning seasons was the 1968-69 campaign whenthe ‘Canes registered their 10th straight winning 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 54-30 (.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 Pittsburgh, Mario Bland recorded his team leading fourthdouble-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Thedouble-double was the seventh of the season for Miami.

1999-00 Hurricane Double-Doubles:

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.

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.

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 second consecutive week the University of Miami receivedvotes in both the Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN Coaches polls. Miamireceived 43 points to rank 26th by the Associated Press and two points torank in a tie for 40th by the USA Today/ESPN Coaches’ poll.

JENNINGS SETS ASSIST RECORD, AGAIN:
Vernon Jennings handed out 10 assists against Pittsburgh on February29 to improve his season total to 170 assists (6.4 apg) this season. The 170assists broke his own single season assist record which he set last season(167 assists).

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 seventh on UM’s career scoring list while Bland is in18th place.

UM Career Scoring List:

EN FUEGO:
In his last four games senior Johnny Hemsley has been on fireconnecting on better than 50 percent from the floor in each game whileaveraging 19.0 points. In his last four games Hemsley has connected on 32-59(.542) from the field, including 8-17 (.471) from three-point range, and 4-5(.800) from the line.

Hemsley’s Last Four Games:

JENNINGS MOVES UP LADDER:
Vernon Jennings recorded 10 assists against Pittsburgh to improvehis career assist total to 472. Jennings ranks second on UM’s career assistslist and trails only Kevin Norris who handed out 493 assists from 1994-98.

BOMBS AWAY:
Senior Johnny Hemsley has recorded 46 three-point baskets thisseason to improve his career total to 146. Hemsley currently ranks third onMiami’s all-time career list.

DEAD-EYE FROM THE LINE:
Miami is shooting a league best 75.2 percent from free throw linethis season. Miami’s five starters have combined to shoot 356-460 (.774)from the line while the starting backcourt of Johnny Hemsley and VernonJennings are shooting 144-181 (.796) from the charity stripe.

OFFENSIVELY SPEAKING:
Miami shot 52.4 percent from the field against Pittsburgh (2-29-00)marking the fifth time this season the Hurricanes have shot 50 percent orbetter from the floor. Last season the Hurricanes shot over 50 percent fromthe floor on 12 occasions. Miami shot 50 percent or better from the flooronly five times 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 249 games, extending the school-record. Overall, the ‘Canes havehit at least one trey in 403 of its 404 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 15 conference games this season the Hurricanes rank No. 1 inscoring defense (57.5 ppg), field goal percentage defense (.376) andthree-point field goal percentage defense (.264).

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 39.3percent 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 26times 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 ranked as the secondhighest single game total in UM history and were the most since Jerome Scottrecorded nine steals against Florida International on March 4, 1991.Jennings currently has 185 career steals to rank third on UM’s career list.

MIAMI RANKS FOR FOURTH STAIGHT SEASON:
Miami currently ranks 26th in the nation in field goal percentagedefense marking the fourth straight season the Hurricanes have rankednationally in the category. Last season the Hurricanes ended the seasonranked 13th in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.384). In1997-98 the University of Miami led the nation holding teams to 37.9 percentshooting from the floor. In 1996-97 Miami held opponents to 38 percentshooting 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 211-580 (.364) shooting from thefloor. Miami has held eight 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 55-214 (.257) from three-pointrange. Miami has also held its last 18 opponents to less than 70 points andan average of just 57.8 points per game.

POSTING GREAT NUMBERS:
This season the Hurricanes have held the opposition’s startingcenters to a combined total of 175 points and 130 rebounds, an average of6.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Miami has allowed only seven startingcenters this season to score in double-figures and only three 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 currently leads the conference in assists this season withan average of 6.87 per game in league contests. Jennings is attempting tobecome 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.

AMONG THE ELITE:
Since the start of the 1996-97 season UM has compiled a 47-22 (.681)record in BIG EAST regular season games tying St. John’s and Connecticut forthe best conference mark over that period.

Conference Records Since 1996-97 (games thru 3-1-00):

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

MIAMI CLINCHES FIRST ROUND BYE:
Miami’s 55-52 win over Notre Dame combined with Seton Hall’s 87-74loss to Villanova on Saturday clinched a first round bye for the Hurricanesat the 2000 AT&T BIG EAST Championship at Madison Square Garden (March8-11). The Hurricanes (11-3) are two games ahead of the Pirates (10-5) withtwo games to play and defeated Seton Hall in their only meeting this season.

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.

DID YOU KNOW?:
The University of Miami has registered a league best 27-6 (.818)conference mark over the last two seasons. Miami, which was 15-3 in leagueplay last season, is 12-3 this year with one games remaining.

Conference Record Last Two Seasons (as of 3-1-00):

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

A SWEEPING SUCCESS:
With their win over Pittsburgh on February 29 the Hurricanesrecorded their third season sweep this season. Miami also swept Notre Dameand West Virginia. Miami has registered 13 BIG EAST regular season two-gamesweeps since joining the league in the 1991-92 season. Miami has nowrecorded at least one series sweep in each of the last six seasons. Below isa list of UM’s BIG EAST series sweeps:

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.

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

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.

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.

BIG EAST TELECONFERENCE:
The BIG EAST men’s basketball coaches will hold six teleconferencesduring the season. Each coach is available for approximately eight minutes.Media wishing to participate should contact the league office at (401)453-0660 for the phone number. The audio from the teleconference is alsoavailable via Broadcast.com through the conference web site at:www.bigeast.org/airwaves/.

Teleconference Dates:

Teleconference Schedule: