No. 14/15 MBB Outlast VT 73-64, 7-0 in ACC

January 30, 2012

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) – Shane Larkin scored 25 points and No. 14 Miami took command with a 13-2 second-half run Wednesday night, beating Virginia Tech 73-64 for its eighth consecutive victory.

Kenny Kadji added 18 points and Trey McKinney-Jones had 12 for the Hurricanes (16-3, 7-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), who trailed by 12 in the first half before getting a 22-6 burst spanning halftime.

National scoring leader Erick Green led the Hokies (11-9, 2-5) with 30 points and Jarell Eddie had 14, but Virginia Tech’s other scorers struggled after a fast start. The loss was the seventh in the last nine games for Virginia Tech.

Trailing by 12, however, Larkin led Miami back into it with 11 points in the big run spanning the halves, and the Hurricanes took a 38-34 lead with 16:43 left. The Hokies seemed on the brink of getting run out of their own building, but Green hit three 3-pointers in a span of under 2 minutes and Virginia Tech led again, 43-41.

Just as Cassell Coliseum whipped into a roaring frenzy, McKinney-Jones hit a long 3-pointer, and Larkin and Rion Brown followed with 3s after a bucket by Cadarian Raines for the Hokies. Two free throws by McKinney-Jones and a dunk by Kadji capped the 13-2 run and the Hokies were again playing catch-up.

They got within 60-53 with two minutes left, but Larkin calmly dribbled the clock down then swished a long 3-pointer from the top of the key with 1:47 to play – his fifth 3 of the night. He finished 9-for-14 with three steals, three assists and two blocks.

Green and Brown each scored eight points during a 22-8 spurt that gave the Hokies a 28-16 lead with 5:57 left in the half, but a 3-pointer by Eddie and a free throw by Green was all Virginia Tech could manage the rest of the half.

Miami closed the first half with a 13-4 burst, including nine points from Larkin, to get within 32-29.

Miami Hurricanes tickets can be purchased at CanesTix.com or by calling the BankUnited Center Ticket Office at 305.284.2263. The ticket office is open Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Game Notes

The starters for Miami were Shane Larkin, Durand Scott, Trey McKinney Jones, Kenny Kadji and Julian Gamble. 

Miami leads the ACC with a 7-0 mark in the league, the best start for an ACC team in conference play since Duke was 10-0 to begin the 2007-08 campaign. 

Miami is the first team not named Duke or North Carolina to start 7-0 in conference since Virginia in 1981. 

Miami starts conference play 7-0 for the first time in school history, dating back to the 1991-92 season when UM joined its first league, the BIG EAST Conference.

Tonight’s victory has UM on an eight-game winning streak, equaling their last win streak of eight in 2009-10. That season UM went on to a 15-1 record to start the season before dropping four-straight ACC games. During the streak, the Canes have won four road games, all against ACC opponents, and have outrebounded six of eight opponents. UM has trailed at the half in four games during those eight games.

Shooting 48.1 percent against VT, Miami has shot better than 45 percent from the floor in 21 halves this season and overall in 12 games. 

Miami is now 12-10 against Virginia Tech all-time and 5-5 on the road. 

Head coach Jim Larrañaga has a 506-350 overall record and is 36-16 in his second season at Miami. Coach L is 16-7 overall in ACC play at Miami, including 9-2 at home and 7-5 on the road. 

Miami has been tied or trailing at halftime in six of its 16 wins this season. In those six games, Miami has outscored its opponents 255-186 in the second stanza. Miami has trailed in 12 of its 16 wins, including the 12-point deficit tonight against Virginia Tech. 

After Virginia Tech shot 54.2 percent in the first half, Miami allowed the Hokies to shoot only 37.9 percent in the second. Miami has not allowed an opponent to shoot better than 50.0 percent in a game from the field this season. 

Shane Larkin scored a team-high 25 points, hitting 5-of-10 from distance, topping his previous high of four, set on Nov. 13, 2013 against FGCU. His 25 points were two short of his career high 27, which he tallied against Jacksonville. Larkin also recorded a career high two blocks, which he recorded within six seconds of each other. 

Kenny Kadji scored the first basket for Miami with 19:37 remaining in the first half. The Canes are now 6-0 when Kadji hits the first bucket. 

Kenny Kadji finished with 18 points. This was his 10th straight game scoring in double figures, and he’s done so in 16 of 19 games this season.

Reggie Johnson pulled down 10 rebounds, his sixth game with double-digit rebounds in his 10 games played.