No. 8 Canes Roll by Overmatched Wake Forest

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP)– Miami was able to overcome its subpar shooting to pull out another convincing victory.

Stefanie Yderstrom and Riquna Williams scored 14 points each to help the 10th-ranked Hurricanes overcome 37-percent shooting in a 64-39 win over Wake Forest on Thursday night.

Shenise Johnson added 10 points and 12 rebounds as Miami (18-3, 7-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) got its seventh straigth win overall and 36th straight at home.

“This wasn’t a momentum win at all,” Miami coach Katie Meier said. “I’m complimenting Wake Forest when I say it was an ugly win. That’s a compliment to their staff and how well they prepare for you.

“It was kind of disjointed, gritty, grimy and scrummy. We had to play it.”

Miami led by 13 at halftime and stretched the advantage to 37-20 on consecutive baskets by Shenise Johnson and Sylvia Bullock in the first 1:17 of the second half.

Sandra Garcia’s jumper with 7:01 remaining got Wake Forest to 52-39. Johnson and Yderstrom followed with consecutive 3-pointers and extended the Hurricanes’ lead to 58-39.

“I try to let the shot come to me and not rush it,” said Yderstrom, who hit three 3-pointers.

Williams’ layup with 1:59 remaining gave Miami its first 20-point lead at 60-39, and the Hurricanes finished the game on a 12-0 run, holding the Deamon Deacons scoreless after Garcia’s basket.

Secily Ray scored nine points to lead Wake Forest (12-8, 2-5), which shot just 25 percent (15 for 60).

“You’ve got to score to beat Miami,” Wake Forest coach Mike Petersen said. “You can’t expect to come down here and play in the 50s. We were trying to get to 70s to get it done. We didn’t make enough shots and didn’t execute well.”

The Demon Deacons stayed close until Miami used a 9-0 run to take a 33-18 lead on Williams’ jumper inside the lane with 1:18 to go in the first half.

Miami held Wake Forest without a field goal for a 6:03 span until Brooke Thomas’ jumper 18 seconds later ended the drought and pulled the Hurricanes within 13 at halftime.

“It was grimy out there; It felt like an ACC game,” Johnson said. “I think they messed up our timing a little bit and did a great job of being physical.”

Both teams struggled offensively during the first 10 minutes of the first half. The Hurricanes shot 6 for 20 from the field and the Demon Deacons were 4 for 15.

Millesa Calicott’s 3-pointer with 7:57 remaining reduced the Hurricanes’ lead to 24-18 before Miami went on its late first half run.

“They were matching us point for point and had more energy than us to start the game,” Meier said. “But after they got through that our defense just took over.”

Johnson missed her first four shots but finished the first half with 10 rebounds and four assists.

“They weren’t frustrating me,” Johnson said. “My shot wasn’t falling so I said, `let me do something else.’ I started to distribute the ball and get my team shots. They did a very good job of knocking them down.”

DOUBLE THEM UP
Shenise Johnson notched her sixth double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 boards. She came only three assists short of her first career triple-double, and added a career-best four blocks to her totals as well.

D-OMINATING PERFORMANCE
The Hurricanes had another impressive defensive performance on Thursday night, holding the Demon Deacons to a 24.2 percent field goal percentage in the first half. The second half wasn’t much different; Wake Forest was held to a 25 percent clip for the game.

HIT THE BENCH
In light of the Achilles injury suffered by All-ACC forward Morgan Stroman, the team had 15 points off the bench in the first half. Overall, the team finished with 27 points off the bench.

TWICE AS NICE
Krystal Saunders and Shawnice Wilson earned their second consecutive starts for the Hurricanes in place of normal starters Morgan Stroman and Riquna Williams. Saunders finished the night with four points, while “Pepper” Wilson added four of her own.