Canes Travel To New York To Face St. John's
Jan. 11, 2004
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI (10-5, 0-1 BIG EAST)
AT ST. JOHN’S UNIVERSITY (4-8, 0-2 BIG EAST)
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Date –Wednesday, January 14, 2004
Time – 7:30 p.m.
Arena –Alumni Hall (6,008)
TV – Fox Sports Net Florida
Radio – WQAM (560 AM)
Website – hurricanesports.com
ON ST. JOHN’S:
St. John’s enters its game with Miami with a record of 4-8, 0-2 in the Big East following a 71-54 home loss to Seton Hall on January 10th. The Red Storm, which has lost two straight, has been led this season by sophomore guard Elijah Ingram who is averaging a team-best 12.8 points per game. Ingram also leads the team in steals (22) and three-point field goals (31). St. John’s has three players averaging in double-figures in scoring despite averaging only 61.0 points per game as a team. In addition to Ingram, senior forward Grady Reynolds (12.4 ppg) and freshman guard Daryll Hill (10.0 ppg) are averaging in double-figures.
THE SERIES:
Miami and St. John’s meet for the 28th time with the Red Storm leading the all-time series 16-11. St. John’s has won six of the last seven games including both match-ups last season. Miami is 2-7 all-time at Alumni Hall.
LAST GAME:
No. 15 PITTSBURGH 84, MIAMI 80 (2OT)January 10, 2004
Convocation Center, Coral Gables, FL
Carl Krauser scored 19 points and Chris Taft added 17, leading 15th-ranked Pittsburgh to an 84-80 double-overtime win over the University of Miami in Coral Gables, FL. Jaron Brown netted 16 points and Julius Page chipped in 15, as the Panthers extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 16 games.
Darius Rice paced Miami with a game-high 22 points. Guillermo Diaz added 18 points and Robert Hite scored 16 for the Hurricanes.
With 3.9 seconds remaining in regulation, Diaz banked in a fade-away jumper to give Miami a two-point lead at 64-62. Krauser then took the inbounds pass, went the length of the court and scored on a driving layup with no time on the clock to tie it.
In the first overtime Diaz knocked down a three from the right wing with two defenders in his face with 2.8 seconds remaining to tie the score at 71-71 and send the game to the second overtime.
Brown’s two foul shots with 45 seconds left in the second overtime gave Pittsburgh an 81-77 lead. The Panthers then made it a six-point game on Krauser’s free throws with 15.5 seconds to go. Diaz nailed a three to pull within 83-80, but the Panthers held on for the win.
LAST MEETING WITH ST. JOHN’S:
ST. JOHN’S 76, MIAMI 73March 8, 2003
Convocation Center, Coral Gables, FL
Marcus Hatten scored a game-high 27 points to lead the St. John’s to a 76-73 victory over the University of Miami in the final regular-season game for both schools.
Elijah Ingram added a career-high 23 points in the victory for St. John’s.
Darius Rice scored 26 points for Miami while James Jones, playing in his final home game, tallied 18 points for the Hurricanes. Robert Hite added 13 points.
St. John’s held a narrow lead throughout the first half, and it owned a 33-27 advantage at the break.
Hatten nailed a trio of three-pointers early in the second half, as the Red Storm opened up a 15-point lead. The Hurricanes battled back and scored nine points in the final 37 secondsto draw within 76-73.
The Hurricanes had two chances to tie the game in the final four seconds but Paulo Coelho’s three-point attempt was blocked by Anthony Glover, and Darius Rice’s last ditch effort with less than a second left was blocked by Hatten to preserve the victory.
TV/RADIO COVERAGE:
Miami’s game versus St. John’s is being produced by ESPN Regional Television and will air in Miami on Fox Sports Net Florida. Dave Sims and Jim Spanarkel will call the action. The game will be broadcast on the Hurricane Radio Network WQAM (560 AM). Joe Zagacki “The Voice of the Hurricanes” will call the action. Brian London will serve as studio host. Fans can also catch the game on the web at hurricanesports.com.
ON THE COACHES:
University of Miami head coach Perry Clark is in his fourth season with the Hurricanes and 15th season overall as a collegiate head coach. Clark is 61-43 (.587) at Miami while his career record in 14 seasons stands at 246-188 (.567).
St. John’s head coach Kevin Clark was named interim head coach on December 19, 2003. This is his first stint as a collegiate head coach. He is 2-5 (.286) with the Red Storm this season.
MIAMI VS. NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS:
Since joining The BIG EAST Conference beginning with the 1991-92 season, the Hurricanes have compiled an 91-43 (.679) record against non-conference opponents, including a 64-14 (.821) mark at home. Miami was 10-4 against non-conference opponents this season.
HIGH FLYERS:
The University of Miami’s backcourt may be the most athletic in the country. Miami’s guards have an average vertical jump of 38.2 inches. All of UM’s guards have vertical jumps of at least 36 inches. Leading the way is freshman Guillermo Diaz who has a vertical leap of 41 inches.
VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS:
Miami is 0-2 against ranked teams this season. Miami was 1-2 against ranked teams last season. The Hurricanes are 19-20 versus ranked opponents since 1996-97 and have defeated at least one ranked team in each of the last nine seasons. Miami is 28-86 (.246) all-time against ranked teams including a 25-72 (.258) record since the rebirth of the program in 1985.
NO DAY AT THE BEACH:
Miami’s 73-72 win over No. 11 Connecticut last season marked the ninth consecutive season that the Hurricanes defeated a ranked opponent at home.
CATCHING FIRE:
Darius Rice has recorded 31 games of 20-or-more points during his UM career including six games this season. Even more impressive is that Rice has gone for 20-or-more points in a single half nine times.
WORKING OVERTIME:
Miami’s game versus Pittsburgh was its first overtime game of the season. Miami played a school single-season record five overtime games last season. Miami has played at least one overtime contest in each of the last six seasons. UM has amassed a 9-7 record (including tournament games) in BIG EAST overtime contests (5-4 at home). The ‘Canes own a 25-25 overall record in overtime contests during their history (5-6 in double-overtime games and a 20-19 mark in single-overtime contests).
MR. CLUTCH:
Darius Rice’s three-point basket with 0.5 seconds left to defeat Connecticut on January 20th marked the fourth time last season the forward 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.
CLARK TOPS AMONG UM COACHES:
Fourth-year head Coach Perry Clark recorded 51 wins in his first three seasons with the Hurricanes marking the most wins by any UM basketball coach in his first three seasons. Clark is 10-5 this season giving him 61 wins as UM’s head coach. The most wins by a UM coach in his first four seasons is 65 set by Bill Foster from 1985-89.
PLAYING ABOVE THE RIM:
The Hurricanes have recorded 54 dunks already this season. Miami registered only 50 dunks all of last season. At this current pace the Hurricanes would record 112 dunks which would easily be the team’s highest total over the last 10 seasons.
TOP RECRUITING CLASS:
Head coach Perry Clark and his staff put together one of the nation’s top recruiting classes for this upcoming season. Miami’s class of forward Karron Clarke, guard Guillermo Diaz, forward/center Leonard Harden III, guard Anthony Harris and forward/center Anthony King is ranked as high as eighth in the nation by Street & Smith’s.
VS THE STATE OF FLORIDA:
Miami is 296-145 (.671) against teams from the state of Florida. Miami has won 31 of its last 35 games against Florida schools dating back to the 1992-93 season.
IT’S ALL ACADEMIC:
According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, the University of Miami men’s basketball program ranks third in the nation among the 117 Division I-A institutions with a 78 percent graduation rate for student-athletes who entered school from 1993-97 and earned their degrees within six years.
Only Stanford (100%) and Southern Methodist (83%) had higher graduation rates among Division I-A institutions. The national average for Division I-A men’s basketball players over that four-year period was 36 percent.
In addition the Hurricanes ranked in a tie for 19th among all 327 Division I institutions.
Graduation rates were tabulated and released by the NCAA in its 2003 NCAA Graduation Rates Report. The Hurricanes’ 78 percent graduation rate is the highest among any institution in the BIG EAST, ACC or SEC.
From 1993-94 to 1995-96 the Hurricanes registered a perfect 100 percent graduation rate.
For the 1995-96 class, both the UM men’s and women’s basketball programs registered 100 percent graduation rates. Miami was one of only six Division I-A institutions, along with BYU, Duke, Rice, North Carolina and Virginia Tech, to record a 100 percent graduation rate for that class in both men’s and women’s basketball.
RICE NAMED WOODEN AWARD CANDIDATE:
Senior forward Darius Rice has been named one of 50 preseason candidates for the John R. Wooden College Basketball Player of the Year Award. Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It 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 GPA. The 2004 Award ceremony, which will include the presentation of the Wooden Award All-American team and the presentation of the Legends of Coaching Award, will be held at The Los Angeles Athletic Club on Saturday, April 10, 2004 and will be broadcast live on CBS.
RICE NAMED NAISMITH CANDIDATE:
Darius Rice has been named one of 30 preseason candidates for the 2003-04 Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award. The Naismith Awards program, now in its 36th 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. Members of the board were asked to name top male and female players who are most likely to be in contention for the award.
HURRICANES DISTRIBUTE DINNERS:
Members of the University of Miami men’s basketball team as well as several student-athletes from the Hurricanes’ football, women’s rowing, women’s track, women’s volleyball, men’s tennis and women’s soccer programs handed out Thanksgiving dinners to six Miami-area organizations prior to the start of the women’s basketball exhibition game versus The Tournament of Champions on November 17 at the Convocation Center.
The six Miami-area organizations who picked up dinners were: Children & Families, Ronald McDonald House, Gladstone Center, Florida Baptist Home, Universal Truth Center, and Child Hope.
The full dinners were donated by Sysco Food Services of South Florida. This Thanksgiving marked the eighth consecutive year that University of Miami Athletic Department and its student-athletes have reached out to the community during the holidays.
HURRICANES VISIT CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL:
Head coach Perry Clark and the University of Miami men’s basketball team spread some holiday cheer on Thursday with a visit to the pediatrics ward at Baptist Hospital in Miami.
“It is very important for our kids to give back to the community,” said head coach Perry Clark. “Giving of ones time is the greatest gift you can give, and I think we were able to spread some Christmas cheer today.”
The Hurricanes visited with children in pediatrics ward as well as the critical care unit. The Miami coaches and players signed autographs, took pictures with the children and distributed approximately 300 toys donated by Mattel, Inc.
“I think it means a lot to the children here at the hospital, and it means a lot to us to see the kids smile,” said All-American forward Darius Rice. “Hopefully we were able to brighten up their holiday.”
UM SIGNS CENTER EARLY:
Head coach Perry Clark signed of 6-11, 233 pound center Chester “C.J.” Giles (Seattle, Wash.) to a national letter of intent during the early signing period.
Last season Giles averaged 8.2 points, 13 rebounds and six blocks per game earning third-team All-State honors and helping Rainier Beach High School to a 26-3 record and its second consecutive Class 3A State Championship. Rainier ended the season ranked 16th in the nation by USA Today.
Giles is ranked 39th overall and 7th at his position by Rivals.com. He is the 12th ranked high school center in the nation by Athlon Sports, is ranked among the Top-100 players in the nation by Lindy’s (No. 66) and The Sporting News (No. 87), and is an honorable mention All-America selection by Street & Smith’s.
BIG EAST SINGLE GAME TICKETS ON SALE:
Single-game tickets for all eight University of Miami men’s basketball BIG EAST conference home games, including battles with Pittsburgh, Villanova, Georgetown and defending NCAA Champion Syracuse, will be available online at www.hurricanesports.com starting at noon on Saturday, December 13.
Fans may also purchase single-game tickets at the Convocation Center box office on Sunday, December 14 when Miami faces intra-state rival Florida State, or at the Hurricane Ticket Office beginning Monday, December 15.
Fans can order single-game tickets by phone starting December 15 by calling 305-284-CANE.
