Game Day: Miami vs. Mississippi State Nov. 19

Miamivs.Mississippi State

THE GAME
Miami opens play in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off on Thursday, Nov. 19 against Mississippi State at 5 p.m. ET, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente. The Canes will face either Texas Tech or Utah in Friday’s second round. 

THE BROADCASTS
Catch the game on ESPN2 with Rich Hollenberg and LaPhonso Ellis making the call. Also check out the game on 1080 WHIM Radio with Joe Zagacki, the Voice of the Hurricanes.

THE SERIES
Miami is 2-2 in the all-time series against Mississippi State, which dates back to the 1957-58 season. The Canes are 0-1 at home against the Bulldogs, 1-0 on the road and 1-1 at neutral sites. Miami won the last matchup with Mississippi State, defeating the Bulldogs, 64-58, on Dec. 13, 2007 in Starkville, Miss.

THE COACH
Head coach Jim Larrañaga has a 563-383 overall record in his 32nd season as a head coach. He is 93-49 in his fifth season at the University of Miami, with a 41-29 mark in ACC play.

THE WEATHER
Projected temperatures on game day: Coral Gables – 86/74; Starkville, Miss. – 68/39 

THE NOTES

Miami Sets Season Ticket Record
In just his fifth season in Coral Gables, Jim Larrañaga continues to set records with the University of Miami men’s basketball team. Miami has nearly sold out the ticket allotment for all home games this season at the BankUnited Center. Currently only 348 seats remain for the 2015-16 campaign. If Miami sells out those remaining seats, this will be the first time in Miami athletics history a team has sold out their season. Due to the record season ticket sales, seats may not be available on a single-game basis.

Entering Coach Larrañaga’s fifth season at The U, fans have bought approximately 5,100 season tickets, more than doubling the total number of season tickets sold in his first season in Coral Gables. When Coach L began his reign in Miami, fans bought 2,251 season tickets for the 2011-12 campaign. After a record-breaking season on the court in 2012-13, season tickets peaked at 3,674 for the 2013-14 year.

When he arrived at Miami, Coach L set out many goals to achieve, none of which had been accomplished in Coral Gables prior to his arrival, including: 1) win the ACC; 2) beat North Carolina and Duke; 3) draw a crowd at the BankUnited Center.

In Larrañaga’s second season, Miami won the ACC Regular Season and Tournament Championships, then went on to play into the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. In his first four seasons, the Canes are 3-2 against Duke and 4-3 against North Carolina. And now, in his fifth campaign, Miami is less than 500 seats away from selling out the BankUnited Center, and accomplishing three of Larrañaga’s goals.

The Last Time Out – Miami vs. Louisiana …
Nov. 16 was the 50th BankUnited Center victory for Coach L (50-19 at the BUC) … This is the first time Miami has made at least 10 3-pointers in each of the first two games of the season since 2007-08 … Miami improved to 85-10 all-time at the BUC when scoring 75 or more points … Miami improved to 48-3 all-time at the BUC when shooting better than 50 percent … Miami and Louisiana each scored 50 points in the second stanza … The last time UM notched 90+ points in back-to-back outings was in 1989 when Miami defeated Davidson 90-78, then Savannah State 107-98 … For the second-straight game, Miami’s starters were Angel Rodriguez, Sheldon McClellan, Davon Reed, Ivan Cruz Uceda and Tonye Jekiri … Six players tallied double-digit points for the Canes: Davon Reed (19), Angel Rodriguez (18), Sheldon McClellan (16), Ivan Cruz Uceda (13), Anthony Lawrence Jr., (12), Ja’Quan Newton (11). The last time six players scored in double digits was against Texas Southern on Nov. 14, 2013: James Kelly (17), Donnavan Kirk (15), Rion Brown (13), Manu Lecomte (12), Davon Reed (11), Garrius Adams (10) … With his 13th point tonight, Angel Rodriguez reached the 500-point mark for his Miami career … Freshman Anthony Lawrence Jr., tallied 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals in only his second game in Hurricanes uniform … Junior Davon Reed tied his career high of 19 points, total in which he has now posted five times, the last time being at Pittsburgh (3/4/15) … Sheldon McClellan’s second field goal against Louisiana was his 200th in a Miami uniform … Ja’Quan Newton tied his career high of five assists, last dished out against Notre Dame (1/17/15).

Balanced Scoring In First Two Games
In the first two games of the 2015-16 season, Miami has had seven players score in double digits, with four players scoring 10+ in both games. Against UT Rio Grande Valley, Sheldon McClellan (18), Ivan Cruz Uceda (16), Davon Reed (14), Ja’Quan Newton (11) and James Palmer (11) notched double-digit points, while Reed (19), Angel Rodriguez (18), McClellan (16), Cruz Uceda (13), Anthony Lawrence Jr. (12) and Newton (11) did against Louisiana.

Rookie Lawrence Jr. Loads the Stat Line
Freshman Anthony Lawrence Jr. filled his stat line against Louisiana, posting 12 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block in 25 minutes. He was 3-6 from the field, 1-2 from three and 5-6 at the line.

Miami at Neutral Sites Under Larrañaga
In Larranaga’s first four seasons at The U, Miami is 13-9 in neutral site games.

Body Changes for Cruz Uceda and Jekiri
Seniors Ivan Cruz Uceda and Tonye Jekiri have spent the summer in the weight room. Cruz Uceda has dropped 20 pounds from 237 to 217, and his body fat has slimmed down from 24 percent to nine percent in just a year in Miami. Jekiri has added 20 pounds to his 7-foot frame, now weighing 250 pounds.

Miami Earning Votes in Both National Polls
Miami is garnering votes in both the AP (48) and the USA Today Coaches (11) preseason poll. The Canes are six places out of the Top 25 in the AP poll and 12 positions out in the USA Today poll. Miami was last listed in preseason polls in 2008-09, when the Canes were No. 17 in the AP and No. 16 in USA Today Coaches poll. The 2008-09 team went on to a 19-13 record and NIT appearance.

Canes Bring Experience to the Court
Miami starts four seniors and a junior, thus entering the year with 16 seasons of collegiate basketball experience. The average age of the starting five is 22.2 years old: Ivan Cruz Uceda: 24, three seasons; Angel Rodriguez: 23, four seasons; Sheldon McClellan: 23, four seasons; Tonye Jekiri: 21, three seasons; Davon Reed: 20, two seasons.

Four Players Boast NCAA Tournament Experience
Senior Tonye Jekiri returns from Miami’s 2012-13 ACC Championship and NCAA Sweet 16 team. Sheldon McClellan (Texas), Kamari Murphy (Oklahoma State) and Angel Rodriguez (Kansas State) have also played in the NCAA Tournament, each with their previous schools.

McClellan on Jerry West Award Watch List
Senior Sheldon McClellan is among the 20 players named to the watch list for the 2016 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced.
As a junior in 2014-15, McClellan’s 48.4-percent shooting was the second-best shooting percentage in the nation by a guard in the Power Five conferences, 18th-best shooting percentage by a guard in the nation, 90th-best shooting percentage in the nation among all positions, and the top shooting percentage by a guard in the ACC.

Miami Predicted to Finish Fifth in ACC
Miami was predicted to finish fifth out of 15 teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season, as announced by the league during Operation ACC Basketball in Charlotte, N.C., Oct. 28. North Carolina was picked to win the league, followed by Virginia, Duke and Notre Dame.
In 2012-13, the Canes were picked to finish fifth, then won the league’s regular season and tournament championship. In all four of Larrañaga’s seasons at Miami, the Canes have finished the season better than predicted at ACC media day.