Game Day: Miami vs. Richmond - March 24 - NIT

The Game

Second-seeded Miami travels to No. 1 seed Richmond for a 7 p.m. matchup on March 24 in the quarterfinals of the National Invitation Tournament in the Robins Center in Virginia. 

The Series

This is the first matchup between Miami and Richmond. Coach Larrañaga is 4-5 all-time vs. the Spiders.

The Broadcasts

Catch the game on ESPN with Mark Jones and Dan Dakich making the call.  Tune in to the game on 560 WQAM Radio with Joe Zagacki, the Voice of the Hurricanes, and 90.5 WVUM, Miami’s student station. 

The Coach

Head coach Jim Larrañaga has a 559-382 overall record in his 31st season as a head coach. He is 89-48 in his fourth season at the University of Miami, with a 41-29 mark in ACC play.

The Polls

AP: Miami – NR; Richmond – NR
USA TODAY: Miami – NR; Richmond – NR
KenPom.com: Miami – 56; Richmond – 53
NCAA RPI: Miami – 65; Richmond – 56

The Weather

Projected temperatures on game day: Coral Gables – 85/69. Richmond, Va. – 55/35.

The Notes

In the NIT
Of the 32 teams in the 2015 NIT field, Arizona State and Illinois State have 12 appearances without making an NIT semifinal appearance. Miami is close behind with 11, and UTEP trials with 10. In Larrañaga’s 31 years as a head coach, he has never coached a game in Madison Square Garden. He played in the World’s Most Famous Arena multiple times while at Providence, and was an assistant coach for Virginia when the Cavaliers won the NIT in 1980. Larrañaga’s final collegiate game as a Friar was played against UNC in 1971, an 86-79 loss for PC in the NIT Elite 8.

NIT Appearances 12th
Overall Record 9-11
First Round 6-6
Second Round 3-2
Quarterfinals 0-3

Miami is ranked the No. 2 seed for the third-straight appearance in the NIT, including the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons.
The Canes are 9-11 in their 11 NIT appearances.
Miami has never won a quarterfinal game.
UM is 6-6 in the first round, 3-2 in the second round and 0-3 in the quarterfinals of the NIT.
Miami has won at least one game in the NIT in five-straight appearances, since 2006.
The Canes have won two games in the NIT in three appearances: 2006, 2011 and 2015.
Miami last hosted a pair of NIT games in 2012, when the Canes defeated No. 7 Valparaiso then lost to No. 6 Minnesota.
In 2011, the Canes defeated No. 7 FAU and No. 3 Missouri State at home before falling at No. 1 Alabama.
No current Hurricanes were on the 2012 NIT team. Only Tonye Jekiri has played in the postseason, the 2013 NCAA campaign.

Miami’s Road Wins Rank Top 11 Nationally
Miami is one of 38 teams in the country, and one of 11 teams from a Top 8 conference, to win 10+ games away from its home arena this regular season. Gonzaga led the way with 14 road & neutral site victories.
The Canes have posted 10+ wins away from home in two of Coach L’s four seasons at Miami. In 2012-13, Miami won 15 on the road, including five neutral-site games. This year, Miami was 10-5 away from the BankUnited Center, with a 3-1 neutral-site record, in the regular season.

Balanced Attack in the Postseason
In four postseason games – two in the ACC Tournament and two in the NIT – Miami has presented a balanced attack with …
* Seven players averaging more than 7.8 points per game: McClellan (10.8 ppg), Lecomte (10.3), Jekiri (10.0), Burnett (9.8), Reed (9.5), Rodriguez (8.0) and Cruz Uceda (7.8).
*Eight guys knocking down a 3-pointer: Burnett (6), Reed (6), Cruz Uceda (5), McClellan (3), Lecomte (3), Rodriguez (2), Sherman (1), Jekiri (1).
* Six players shooting 43 percent or better from the field: Cruz Uceda (.524), Sherman (.500), Rodriguez (.500), Jekiri (.485), Burnett (.448), McClellan (.438).
For a complete listing of postseason stats, check page 10 of the notes.

Jekiri for Three
Junior 7-footer Tonye Jekiri attempted and connected on his first career 3-pointer in the second half against Alabama in the second round of the NIT.

Lecomte Stepping into Point Guard Position
In the six games where Angel Rodriguez either didn’t play, or played less than 10 minutes, Manu Lecomte averaged 13.0 points, 2.7 assists, 1.8 rebounds in 27.8 minutes per outing. He is shooting 43.2 percent (19-44) from the field, 52.6 percent (10-19) from three and 93.8 percent (30-32) at the line in those six games: North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech twice, NC Central and Alabama.
In his 29 other games, he averages 7.5 points, 1.7 assists, 1.3 rebounds in 22.4 minutes.
In those six games without Rodriguez, Lecomte has scored 20 points at Virginia Tech, and in the last two outings, he has 18 vs. NC Central and 17 against Alabama. In the other 29 games, he has scored 20+ points once, and 16+ points once.

Postseason Awards for Four Hurricanes
Junior forward Tonye Jekiri was named to the 2015 Coaches and ACSMA All-Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Team. Jekiri also joined Sheldon McClellan and Angel Rodriguez as honorable mentions on the 2015 ACSMA All-ACC Team.
Sophomore guard Davon Reed was named to the All-ACC Academic Men’s Basketball Team.

Mixing up the Starting Lineup
Miami has used 11 starting lineups this season, and every scholarship player has started at least one game. For a complete listing, check page six of the notes.

Miami’s Team, One Year Ago
A season ago, only three of Miami’s guys were available to play for the Hurricanes, three were sitting out as redshirts, two were playing at other colleges and three were still seniors in high school.
Tonye Jekiri, Manu Lecomte, Davon Reed – Playing for Miami.
Deandre Burnett, Sheldon McClellan, Angel Rodriguez – Redshirts, practicing with the Canes.
Joe Thomas – at Niagara University; Ivan Cruz Uceda – at Harcum College (Ju-Co).
Ja’Quan Newton, James Palmer, Omar Sherman – Seniors in high school.