Hurricanes Host St. John's In Regular Season Finale
March 7, 2003
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ST. JOHN’S UNIVERSITY (14-12, 6-9) vs. UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI (10-15, 3-11)
Saturday, March 8, 2003 – 9:00 p.m. (ET)
Convocation Center (7,000) – Coral Gables, FL
TV: ESPN; Radio: Hurricane Radio Network
Website: hurricanesports.com
ON ST. JOHN’S:
The St. John’s Red Storm (14-12, 6-9) locked up the No. 5 seed in the BIG EAST East Division with a 75-59 win over Rutgers on Thursday night. Marcus Hatten, the BIG EAST’s second leading scorer, poured in a league season-high 44 points.
Hatten is averaging 22.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.8 steals per game. Hatten, in his second season with the Red Storm, has already recorded 1,233 career points.
St. John’s ranks second in the league in steals at 9.81 per game. Miami ranks first averaging 10.08 steals per contest.
THE SERIES:
Miami and St. John’s meet for the 27th time with the Red Storm leading the all-time series 15-11. St. John’s has won five of the last six games including a 77-74 win earlier this season at Madison Square Garden. Miami is 7-4 all-time at home against the Red Storm.
LAST OUTING:
MIAMI 79, VIRGINIA TECH 71
March 5, 2003
Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, VA
James Jones poured in a game-high 21 points to lead the Miami-Florida Hurricanes to a 79-71 victory over the Virginia Tech Hokies in a Big East Conference showdown.
Eric Wilkins added a career-high 19 points while Armondo Surratt contributed a career-high 15. Darius Rice, hampered with prained ligaments in his right hand, did not start but came off the bench to chip in 10 points for Miami.
Terry Taylor netted 16 points and pulled down 10 boards, Carlos Dixon tallied 12 points, with Brian Chase chipping in 11 points in defeat for the Hokies.
The Hurricanes started the game with a 16-7 run, eventually going into the break with a 38-30 lead. Miami shot 55.2 percent from the floor in the first half, while holding the Hokies to only 38.5 percent shooting from the field in the period.
Miami finished the game with a 16-8 run, en route to the eight-point victory. From the floor in the second half the Hurricanes shot 50 percent, while limiting Virginia Tech to only 39.5 percent shooting from the field after the break.
The Hurricanes were 17-of-27 at the foul line in the game but connected on 10 of 12 from the line in the final minute to ice the game. Miami shot 52.7 percent from the floor in the game, while holding the Hokies to only 39.1 percent from the field in the contest.
LAST TIME AGAINST ST. JOHN’S:
ST. JOHN’S 77, MIAMI 74
February 2, 2003
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Marcus Hatten scored 22 points and Elijah Ingram added a career-high 21, all in the second-half, to lead St. John’s to a 77-74 victory over Miami at Madison Square Garden. Eric King had 13 points for the Red Storm.
Darius Rice had 25 points and eight rebounds to lead the Hurricanes. James Jones scored 18 and Armondo Surratt had 11 for Miami.
The Hurricanes were behind by as many as eight points in the second half, but took the lead at 66-64 on a dunk by Rice with 4:12 left. St. John’s came right back and used a 9-1 run, led by back-to-back three-pointers from Ingram, to take control. A pair of free throws by Kyle Cuffe extended the Red Storm to a 73-67 advantage with 1:06 remaining.
The Red Storm led by as many as nine points in the first half before settling for a 38-33 advantage at the break. The Hurricanes rallied and led by as many as three in the second half, the last time at 53-50 following a layup by Gary Hamilton with 10:33 remaining.
However, the Red Storm responded with a 14-3 spurt and pushed their lead to 64-56 on a three-pointer by Ingram with 5:42 left.
TV/RADIO COVERAGE:
Miami’s game versus Georgetown will be broadcast live around the nation on ESPN. Dave Stader and Len Elmore will call the action.
The game will be broadcast on the Hurricane Radio Network. Joe Zagacki “The Voice of the Hurricanes” will handle the play-by-play with Josh Darrow adding analysis. Brian London will serve as studio host.
A WIN AGAINST ST. JOHN’S WOULD:
Improve UM’s record to 12-15, 5-11 BIG EAST.Secure Miami a berth in the BIG EAST Tournament.Mark UM’s second straight win.Mark the sixth straight season that UM has won its regular season finale.
ON THE COACHES:
University of Miami head coach Perry Clark is his third season with the Hurricanes and 14th season overall as a collegiate head coach. Clark is 51-36 (.586) at Miami while his career record stands at 236-181 (.566).
St. John’s head coach Mike Jarvis is in his fifth season with the Red Storm and 18th season overall. His record at St. John’s is 97-50 (.660) while his career mark stands at 350-191 (.647).
SENIOR DAY:
The St. John’s game marks the final home game for seniors Rafael Berumen, Paulo Coelho, James Jones and Mike Simmons. The four will be honored prior to the game. Miami is 13-4 on Senior Day since the rebirth of the program in 1985, including five consecutive wins. This marks the second time that Miami has played St. John’s on Senior Day. On March 5, 2000, Miami defeated St. John’s, 74-70, in overtime in the final game of the season to claim a share of the BIG EAST regular season title.
RICE NAMED TO MIDSEASON WOODEN LIST:
Darius Rice is among 30 midseason finalists for the 2002-03 John R. Wooden Award. A national poll was conducted by the Wooden Award Midseason Committee to determine the Top 30 Midseason candidates.
The Wooden Award, which will be presented on April 1 in Los Angeles, is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball and is bestowed upon the nation’s best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his university that he is making progress toward graduation and maintaining a cumulative 2.0 grade point average.
Rice is one of seven BIG EAST players on the list of 30 candidates including Carmelo Anthony (Syracuse), Marcus Hatten (St. John’s), Brandin Knight (Pittsburgh), Emeka Okafor (Connecticut), Michael Sweetney (Georgetown) and Chris Thomas (Notre Dame).
JONES NAMED ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN:
James Jones has been selected to the 2003 Verizon Academic All-America second-team. Jones, a two-time Verizon Academic All-District selection, is the first UM basketball player to earn Verizon Academic All-America distinction. Jones, who carries a 3.405 cumulative GPA in finance, has started all 26 games at power forward this season for the Hurricanes and is averaging 17.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game.
JONES NAMES TO ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT TEAM:
James Jones has been selected to the 2003 Verizon Academic All-District II Men’s Basketball team. This marks the second consecutive season Jones has earned Verizon Academic All-District honors.
Joining Jones as All-District selections are Matt Bonner (Florida), Adam Hess (William & Mary), Jon Larranaga (George Mason) and Brad McKeiver (Campbell).
COMING ON STRONG:
Miami forward Darius Rice has really heated up in the new year averaging 21.1 points per game since January 1st.
CARRYING THE LOAD:
Darius Rice (18.8 ppg) and James Jones (17.1 ppg) have shouldered the scoring load for the Hurricanes this season. The two are accounting for half (50.0%) of Miami’s points. Either Rice or Jones has led the Hurricanes in scoring in every game this season.
RICE NAMED ALL-DISTRICT SIX FIRST-TEAM:
Darius Rice was named first-team All-District 6 for the second consecutive season by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
Rice joins Tim James (1998, 1999) as the only Hurricanes to earn first-team All-District honors in consecutive seasons. He currently ranks among the BIG EAST Conference leaders in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, three-point field goal percentage and three-point field goals made.
Rice, who was a second-team All-District selection as a freshman, joins UM legend Rick Barry (1963, 1964, 1965) as the only Miami basketball players to earn All-District honors in three straight seasons.
The selection of Rice marks the sixth consecutive season the Hurricanes have had at least one All-District selection.
PLAYING THEIR BEST AGAINST THE BEST:
The UM forward combination of Darius Rice and James Jones have both shined this season in the big games. Against ranked teams Rice is averaging 34.3 points and 6.0 rebounds while shooting 35-69 (.507) from the floor and 15-33 (.455) from three-point range. Jones is averaging 21.0 points against those teams while shooting 21-39 (.538) from the field.
RICE SEEING 20-20:
With his 32 points against Virginia Tech, Darius Rice recorded his fourth consecutive game of 20 or more points. It marked the first time in his UM career he had posted four consecutive games of 20 or more points. The last player to record four straight 20-point games was Tim James who posted five straight during the 1998-99 season. Rice has recorded eight games of 20 or more points this season which leads the team.
NO DAY AT THE BEACH:
Miami’s 73-72 win over No. 11 Connecticut this season marked the ninth consecutive season that the Hurricanes defeated a ranked opponent at home.
WORKING OVERTIME:
Miami played its fifth overtime of the season against Villanova on February 8. Miami is 1-4 in overtime games this season. The five overtime games establishes a school single-season record. Miami was 3-0 last season in overtime games. Miami has played at least one overtime contest in each of the last five seasons. UM has amassed a 9-6 record (including tournament games) in BIG EAST overtime contests (5-3 at home). The ‘Canes own a 25-24 overall record in overtime contests during their history (5-5 in double-overtime games and a 20-19 mark in single-overtime contests).
VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS:
Miami is 1-2 against ranked teams this season. The Hurricanes are 19-19 versus ranked opponents since 1996-97 and have defeated at least one ranked team in each of the last nine seasons. Miami is 28-84 (.250) all-time against ranked teams including a 25-70 (.263) record since the rebirth of the program in 1985.
MIAMI GRADUATION RATE RANKS THIRD:
According to a report released by The Chronicle of Higher Education, the University of Miami men’s basketball program ranks third in the nation among the 115 Division I-A institutions with an 82 percent graduation rate for student-athletes who entered school from 1992-93 to 1995-96.
The national average for men’s basketball players over that four-year period was 34 percent. Graduation rates were tabulated and released by the NCAA in its 2002 NCAA Graduation Rates Report.
Miami’s 1993-94 to 1995-96 classes registered a perfect 100 percent graduation rate.
MR. CLUTCH:
Darius Rice’s three-point basket with 0.5 seconds left to defeat Connecticut on January 20th marked the fourth time this season the junior forward has hit a three-pointer at the end of regulation to either win the game or send the game to overtime.
With the Hurricanes’ down 72-69 to Florida , Rice connected on a three-pointer from the right corner with 26 seconds remaining to tie the score. Florida went on to win the game 94-93 in double-overtime.
On January 4th against North Carolina, Rice hit a three-pointer, again from the right corner, to tie the score at 60-60 with three seconds left. Miami went on to win the game 64-61.
In Miami’s first meeting with Connecticut on January 11, Rice sent the game to overtime with a three-pointer from the tip of the key tying the score at 71-71 with two seconds left. Connecticut won the game 83-80.
MIAMI CHRISTENS CONVOCATION CENTER:
The Hurricanes christened the Convocation Center, the new on-campus home of men’s and women’s basketball, and the University’s first large-capacity venue for other educational, cultural and community events with a 64-61 overtime win over North Carolina on January 4.
The $48 million facility, totally funded through private donations, seats 7,000 for basketball and will provide the University and the Coral Gables community with a facility designed for a wide array of uses.
UM LEAVES MIAMI ARENA IN STYLE:
Miami ended its 14-year run at Miami Arena with a 68-62 victory over Lehigh on December 30. Miami began playing its home games at the Miami Arena in 1988 and registered a 135-66 (.672) record including a 5-0 record this season. Since 1994-95 the Hurricanes had compiled a 98-26 (.790) overall home record at the Arena.
MIAMI vs. NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS:
Since joining The BIG EAST Conference beginning with the 1991-92 season, the Hurricanes have compiled an 81-39 (.672) record against non-conference opponents, including a 56-13 mark (.809) at home. Miami finished 7-4 against non-conference opponents this season and has won 24 of its last 29 games against non-conference teams. Miami has won 20 consecutive home games against non-conference opponents.
BEING THROWN INTO THE FIRE:
Miami has relied heavenly on four of its freshmen this season. Rob Hite, Armondo Surratt, Eric Wilkins and Gary Hamilton have started a combined 48 games and are all averaging 17 or more minutes per game. The 48 combined freshmen starts are the most since the 1985-86 season, UM’s first since the program was dropped in 1971, when Eric Brown (27), Dennis Burns (20), Bryan Hughes (28), Kevin Presto (28) and Mark Richardson (18) combined to start 121 games.
Twice this season the Hurricanes have had three freshmen in the starting line-up. On January 29 versus Providence, Robert Hite, Eric Wilkins and Armondo Surratt all started in the 60-57 win. Most recently Eric Wilkins, Armondo Surratt and Gary Hamilton all started in the Hurricanes 79-71 win over Virginia Tech. The last time the Hurricanes had three freshmen in starting lineup was February 18, 1992 when freshmen Michael Gardner, Constantin Popa and Ochiel Swaby all started in a 74-50 loss at Villanova.
Miami has had at least one freshman in the starting lineup in every game this season.
RICE NAMED TO PRESEASON NAISMITH LIST:
University of Miami junior forward Darius Rice was been named one of 30 preseason candidates for the 2002-03 Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award.
The Naismith Awards program, now in its 35th year, honors the outstanding college basketball players in the United States. The awards program was founded by the Atlanta Tipoff Club, an organization dedicated to recognizing the achievements of student-athletes in basketball.
The candidates were selected by a vote of the Board of Selectors comprised of leading basketball coaches, journalists and basketball analysts.
A SWEEPING SUCCESS:
With its win over Virginia Tech on March 5, Miami recorded a two-game season sweep over the Hokies. Miami has registered 18 BIG EAST regular season two-game sweeps since joining the league in the 1991-92 season. The Hurricanes have recorded at least one series sweep in each of the last nine seasons.
WHAT HAPPENS IF:
1. UM defeats St. John’s
Miami qualifies for the BIG EAST Tournament.
If Virginia Tech defeats West Virginia, Miami wins the tiebreaker due to a season sweep over the Hokies. (UM win tiebreaker with 2-0 record versus Virginia Tech)
2. UM loses to St. John’s
If Virginia Tech loses to WV – Miami qualifies for BIG EAST Tournament. (UM win tiebreaker with 2-0 record versus Virginia Tech)
If Virginia Tech defeats WV (Miami eliminated from BIG EAST Tournament)
Should the Hurricanes qualify for the BIG EAST Tournament they would be the No. 6 seed in the East and would face Seton Hall, the No. 3 seed in the West, at 9 p.m. on Wednesday March 12.
