Motley Goes for 1K as @CanesWBB Faces La Salle

La SalleatMiami

The Game
The Hurricanes, receiving votes in both the AP Poll and USA TODAY Coaches Poll, will conclude play in the Miami Thanksgiving Classic Sunday at 1 p.m. against La Salle at the BankUnited Center. Tickets are $5, with youth 12-and-under admitted free of charge.

Adrienne Motley, a junior guard from Newport News, Va., will be seeking to reach the 1,000-point milestone in her career. She currently has 998 points in 70 games, placing her just two points away from becoming the 24th Hurricane to reach quadruple digits.

The Miami Thanksgiving Classic
Featuring three teams, including the Hurricanes, the Miami Thanksgiving Classic has one game each day at 1 p.m. from Friday through Sunday. Miami beat Milwaukee 77-38 in the opener and Milwaukee downed La Salle 69-53 Saturday.

The Series
La Salle is the third of four teams Miami will face this season that it has not previously squared off against.

The Team
Eight Hurricanes are back from a team that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2014-15. That group includes a trio of starters who are now the team captains: junior guard Adrienne Motley, a Preseason All-ACC selection, junior guard Jessica Thomas and redshirt senior guard Michelle Woods.

One of the eight returnees is redshirt junior forward Keyona Hayes, who missed last season due to an ankle injury after leading the team in rebounding in 2013-14. The Hurricanes also have a quartet of sophomores in forward/center Erykah Davenport, guard Nigia Greene (redshirt sophomore), forward Keyanna Harris and forward Khaila Prather.

Additionally, Miami has four new players in the fold this season in guard Laura Cornelius, forward/center Emese Hof, forward/center Zada Williams and guard/forward Shaneese Bailey, who will sit out the season as a transfer from Florida Atlantic.

The Coach
Meier, in her eleventh season in Coral Gables, Fla., has led Miami to great heights during her tenure. Since 2009-10, the Wheaton, Ill. native has directed the program to its greatest six-year stretch ever, making the postseason in all six years, with five 20-plus win seasons and four NCAA Tournament appearances.

Meier has guided Miami to 53 victories in ACC play over the past five seasons, the second-most of any team in the conference. The 2010-11 AP National Coach of the Year  is in her 15th season as a head coach, spending the first four at Charlotte, and owns a career record of 265-179, including 189-134 at Miami.

The Opponent
The Explorers, picked to finish 12th in the Atlantic 10 Conference, are 0-5 to open the 2015-16 season. La Salle has won 15 games in each of the last two years, including a 15-16 (5-11 A-10) record last season.

Last Time Out
Miami improved its record to 6-0 for the third time ever with its 77-38 defeat of Milwaukee Friday at the BUC. Motley poured in a game-high 17 points, including nine in the first five minutes of a fourth period during which the Hurricanes outscored Milwaukee 26-4. Cornelius reached double figures for the first time in her career, concluding the game with 10 points, and made all four of her field goal attempts. The Hurricanes had a 44-8 edge in points in the paint and led 31-2 in bench points.

Up Next
The Hurricanes are set to take on Illinois Wednesday, Dec. 2 at the BUC in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The game is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Promotions
As is the case for all women’s basketball games at the BankUnited Center this season, youth 12-and-under will receive free admission. Team posters, schedule cards and new rules infographics will be available at the marketing table by the main entrance.