Game Day: Charleston at #15/19 Miami

College of CharlestonatNo. 15/19 Miami

The Game
No. 15/19 Miami wraps up a three-game homestand Saturday, Dec. 19 when the Hurricanes face the College of Charleston at 2 p.m. in the BankUnited Center.

The Broadcasts
Catch the game on FOX Sports South and RSN with Wes Durham and Matt Carroll making the call. Affiliates include: Comcast SportsNet, ESPN3, FS Arizona, FS Carolinas, FS Detroit Plus, FS Indiana Plus, FS Midwest Plus,  FS North Plus, FS Prime Ticket, FS San Diego, FS South, FS Southwest Plus, FS Wisconsin, NESN, ROOT Sports Northwest, ROOT Sports Pittsburgh, ROOT Sports Rocky Mtn., SportsTime Ohio, SUN Sports, YES Network  
Also check out 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 569-384 overall record in his 32nd season as a head coach. He is 99-50 in his fifth season at the University of Miami, with a 41-29 mark in ACC play.

The Polls (as of Dec. 14)
AP: Miami -15, College of Charleston – NR
USA TODAY: Miami – 19, College of Charleston – NR
KenPom.com: Miami – 12, College of Charleston – 160
NCAA RPI: Miami -33, College of Charleston – 79

The Weather
Game day temperatures: Coral Gables – 71/64; Charleston, S.C.- 54/37.

The Series
Miami is 3-0 in the all-time series against Charleston, which dates back to the 1946-47 season. The Canes are 1-0 at home against the Cougars, 1-0 on the road and 1-0 at neutral sites. Miami won the last matchup with Charleston, defeating the Cougars, 67-40, on Dec. 30, 2014 at the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables.

The Note
Miami’s all-time leading scorer Rick Barry will return to Coral Gables Saturday to watch his son play for the College of Charleston. In 1964-65, Barry became the Hurricanes’ first consensus All-America selection. The 6-7, 200-pound native of Roselle Park, N.J., led the nation in scoring with a 37.4 average in his senior season. He went on to become the only player in basketball history to win single-season scoring titles in the NCAA, ABA and NBA.

Larrañaga Closing in on 100 Wins at Miami
In just his fifth year at UM, Jim Larrañaga is closing in on 100 wins at The U; he is currently 99-50. Bruce Hale was the Miami coach who won 100 games the quickest, earning 100 victories in just 159 games. Hart Morris took 163 games, Frank Haith 174 and Leonard Hamilton took 230 games.

Hot Shooting Canes
All 10 scholarship players are shooting at least 40.0 percent from the field, and five players are hitting more than 50 percent of their shots. Sheldon McClellan leads the way with his 59.0 percent shooting, followed by Tonye Jekiri (55.2%), Kamari Murphy (53.3%), Ivan Cruz Uceda (52.3%) and Anthony Lawrence (52.9%).

Canes Top 10 Nationally in Shooting
Miami is one of seven teams in the country shooting at least 49.9 percent from the field and 42.4 percent from long distance.

Miami Holds the Lead
In Miami’s eight victories the Canes have lead all but 10 minutes and 54 seconds combined. The Canes trailed 4:59 vs. UTRGV and 3:59 at Nebraska, added to 1:21 vs. Lafayette, 0:22 vs. Mississippi State and 0:13 vs. Florida.
Miami hasn’t trailed in three games – against Utah, Butler and Charlotte. Miami trailed by only three points in each of its first two games against UTRGV and Louisiana, two points against Mississippi State, three points at Nebraska, one vs. Florida, and never trailed against Charlotte or nationally ranked Utah and Butler.

Miami’s Starters Show Experience
Against Florida, Miami started two redshirt seniors, one true senior, a redshirt junior and a true junior. Those players have now combined for 289 career starts and 478 games played. Sheldon McClellan has started 70 games playing in 115, Tonye Jekiri has 62 starts in 113 games, Angel Rodriguez is at 78/106, Davon Reed 40/72 and Kamari Murphy 39/72.
Those five players have been on a Division I team a combined 21 seasons, as McClellan and Rodriguez are both in their fifth year on the court, Jekiri and Murphy are each in their fourth season, and Reed is a true junior.
The average age of that starting five is 21.8 years old: Rodriguez – 23; McClellan – 23; Murphy – 22; Jekiri – 21; Reed – 20.

McClellan on Three National Player of the Year Watch Lists
Senior shooting guard Sheldon McClellan is turning heads across the country, earning nods on a trio of watch lists for national player of the year awards. He is one of 50 players on the Naismith Trophy Men’s College Player of the Year early season watch list, one of 33 players on the watch list for the Oscar Robertson Trophy for Men’s National Player of the Year and is among the 20 players named to the watch list for the 2016 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award.
While leading the Canes to a 7-1 record and No. 17/20 position in the polls, McClellan is currently ranked nationally in 10 statistical categories. He is No. 44 in free throw percentage (89.7%), No. 50 in field goal percentage (59.7%), No. 81 in total points (119) and No. 96 in field goals made (96). His 59.7 percent shooting is ninth in the nation among guards and fourth-best among players on teams in the top eight basketball conferences (Power Five plus A-10, BIG EAST & American).

Rodriguez vs. the Florida Gators
In two career games as a Hurricane against Florida, Angel Rodriguez averaged 20.5 points, 3.0 steals, 2.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He was 12-of-22 from the field, 8-of-13 from three and 9-of-11 at the line.

Newton Improves From Rookie to Sophomore Season
Miami sophomore Ja’Quan Newton has immensely improved his stats from last year through the first eight games of the season. The Philadelphia native is scoring 12.0 points per game while hitting 48.3 percent of his attempts. A season ago, Newton averaged 4.0 ppg on 40.5 percent shooting. This year, he has scored greater than 10 points and played more than 20 minutes in seven games, whereas last year he only scored double-digits four times and played more than 20 minutes in seven of his 34 games played

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.

Quick Hits
– As a team, Miami is hitting 49.9 percent from the field and 42.4 percent from three.
– Miami has posted 14.4 assists per game in the first nine outings.
– Miami’s bench has scored 25.7 points per game, including 50 against Mississippi State and 35 vs. Charlotte. The Canes’ bench players have outscored the opponent’s bench 25.7 ppg to 19.7 ppg.
– The Canes have scored 30.9 points per game in the paint, including 50 paint points against Northeastern and 46 against Mississippi State.
– Miami is averaging 15.4 points off of turnovers, compared to 10.6 from opponents.
– Five Hurricanes are averaging at least 9.2 points per game.
– Five Canes pull down at least 3.0 rebounds per game.
– Six players are averaging at least 21.0 minutes per game.
– Eight Canes have knocked down a 3-pointer and 10 have attempted a three.
– 10 scholarship players are shooting better than 40 percent from the field and three are better than 45 percent from long distance.
– Every Cane has scored 10+ points in at least one game.
– UM is averaging 8.3 threes made per game and 20.4 made free throws per game.

What’s Trending – Individually
– Ja’Quan Newton has scored double-digit points in seven games after only scoring 10+ in four games as a rookie. He has already scored 99 points as a sophomore after 135 points in 34 games a season ago.
– Anthony Lawrence has tallied at least nine points in four outings.
– Davon Reed has grabbed at least three rebounds in every game. He has hit three-or-more free throws in every game but two (vs. Utah and Florida).
– Sheldon McClellan has scored 16+ points in six games. He has a steal in every game but one (vs. Charlotte), and has shot better than 50 percent from the field in all but two games (Butler and Nebraska).
– Angel Rodriguez has knocked down a 3-pointer in every game. He has scored in double-digits in seven games, and notched four-or-more assists in six outings.
– Kamari Murphy has at least one block in four-straight games.
– Tonye Jekiri has pulled down at least 10 rebounds in seven games, including four games with 12. He has at least one assist in every outing but one (vs. Charlotte).
– Ivan Cruz Uceda has knocked down at least one 3-pointer in every game except two, at Nebraska and vs. Florida.