Men's Basketball Cruises to a 76-59 Win Over Florida Atlantic
Nov. 18, 2000
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) – Freshman Darius Rice scored 26 points Saturday nightas the University of Miami beat Florida Atlantic 76-59 in coach Perry Clark’sdebut as coach of the Hurricanes.
Rice, the nephew of NFL great Jerry Rice, tossed in five 3-point baskets.
The 6-foot-10 forward rallied the Hurricanes (1-0) from five-points down inthe second half by connecting on successive 3-point baskets that gave Miami a44-41 lead.
After trailing 41-36 with 16:33 left, the Hurricanes used a 13-point run andwent ahead 49-41 with 11:18 remaining.
Before Rice heated up, the Owls (0-1) threatened to spoil Clark’s first gameat Miami. Clark, formerly the coach at Tulane, has taken over the Miami programvacated when Leonard Hamilton accepted the head coaching job with theWashington Wizards.
In the first half, the Hurricanes hardly resembled a team that reached theSweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament last year. Miami turned the ball over 15 times,and allowed FAU to gain a 26-18 rebounding advantage.
The Owls, coming off a 2-28 season, were tied 25-25 late in the half despitecommitting 17 turnovers and shooting just 35 percent from the field and1-for-12 from 3-point range.
Rice is the first true freshman to start a season opener for Miami since1993-94. Clay Fuller led FAU with 16 points.
Miami now holds a 14-0 series lead over FAU. The Hurricanes have won 23straight games against schools in the state of Florida.
