Game Day: No. 11 Miami in the ACC Tournament

The Game
No. 11 Miami opens ACC Tournament play in the Quarterfinals as the third seed on Thursday, March 10 at 9 p.m. against 6-seed Virginia Tech.

The Broadcasts
Catch the game on ESPN with Dan Shulman, Jay Bilas and Allison Williams on the call, as well as on the ACC Network with Tim Brando and Dan Bonner. Affiliates: http://theacc.co/mbb16watch10 .
Also check out the game on 560 WQAM radio with Joe Zagacki, the Voice of the Hurricanes.

The Coach
Head coach Jim Larrañaga has a 585-389 overall record in his 32nd season as a head coach. He is 115-55 in his fifth season at the University of Miami, with a 54-34 mark in ACC play. Coach L is 6-3 in the ACC Tournament.

The Polls (as of March 7)
AP: Miami -11
USA TODAY: Miami – 11
KenPom.com: Miami – 12
NCAA RPI: Miami – 7
Miami’s 16-consecutive weeks in the polls top the school record of 12 from 2001-02.
UM has been ranked in the AP’s top 15 for 13 weeks this season, eclipsing the previous school record of 10 in the 1959-60 season.
The Canes are ranked 12-or-better in the AP for the seventh time this season, 14th time under Coach L, 18th time since 1985-86 and 25th time since 1959-60.

The Weather
Game day temperatures: Coral Gables – 81/71; Washington, D.C. – 75/49.

The Note
Senior guard Sheldon McClellan is the third-most efficient offensive player in the country among players used in 20 percent of possessions, and 20th overall, according to KenPom.com on March 7. McClellan’s 2-point shooting percentage is 56.5 percent this season. McClellan has posted the 15th-best shooting percentage (49.5%) in the country among guards, and has the top shooting percentage among guards in the ACC, according to stats on NCAA.org on March 7.

The Anniversary
The 2015-16 season marks the 10-year anniversary of Coach Jim Larrañaga and George Mason University’s Cinderella run to the 2006 Final Four.

Miami Posts 20-Win Season
Coach Jim Larrañaga has posted his fourth 20-win season in five years at The U, and his 10th career 20-win season. This is Miami’s seventh 20-win season since joining the ACC for the 2004-05 campaign. Larrañaga is just the second coach in Miami history with four 20-win seasons, joining Bruce Hale (1954-67).

13+ ACC Wins for the Second Time Under Coach L
Miami has won 13 games in ACC play for just the second time in school history, along with 15 wins in 2012-13. In five seasons under Larrañaga, the Canes have won seven-or-more ACC games each season. Prior to the arrival of Coach L, Miami had never won 10 ACC games in a season.

Miami as a Ranked Team
Miami is one of seven schools in the country to win at least five games over top 25 teams this season: 8-Kansas; 7-Oklahoma, 6-Xavier, Texas; 5-Miami, Virginia, Wisconsin. Miami is one of five schools to start the season unranked and defeat at least two top 15 teams: 5-Texas; 3-Iowa, Texas A&M, Xavier; 2-Miami.

Tied for Most Regular-Season Wins
Miami was 24-5 in the regular season, tied with the 24-6 record in 2012-13, for the most regular-season wins in Hurricanes history. In Larrañaga’s five seasons, the Canes have the following records in the regular season: 2015-16: 24-5, 2014-15: 20-11, 2013-14: 16-15, 2012-13: 24-6, 2011:12: 18-11.

Best FG Shooting Percentage in 27 Years
The Canes are hitting 47.2 percent (784-1661) from the field, the best in Miami’s history since the 1988-89 season when UM was hitting 49.2 percent (1024-2083) of its shots. Miami’s 75.0 percent at the line is the best since 77.1 percent in 2001-02.

2015-16 Team Highlights
– First team in Miami history to sell out its home arena for the entire season.
– 24 regular season wins are tied with 2012-13 season for the most in Miami history.
– 13 wins in ACC play are the second most in school history, behind 15 in 2012-13.
– Perfect 9-0 at home in ACC play, 15-1 at home overall.
– Defeated five ranked teams: No. 3 Virginia, No. 11 Louisville, No. 16 Utah, No. 22/20 Butler and No. 24/20 Duke, with back-to-back wins over Virginia and Louisville.
– Ranked in the polls a school record 16-straight weeks. Ranked top-15 for a school record 13 weeks, including current streak of five-straight weeks.
– Won the Puerto Rico Tip Off, defeating No. 16 Utah, No. 22/20 Butler and Mississippi State by 20.0 points per game. Puerto Rico native Angel Rodriguez was named MVP.
– Won ACC-Big Ten Challenge game at Nebraska, 77-72 in overtime.
– Defeated in-state rival Florida, which was receiving votes at the time.
– Posted 11-1 non-conference record with only loss on a buzzer-beater vs. Northeastern. The Canes were 6-1 at home, 2-0 on the road and 3-0 at neutral sites.
– Coach L named ACC Coach of the Year for second time in four seasons.
– Three players – Sheldon McClellan, Tonye Jekiri and Angel Rodriguez – named All-ACC,while Jekiri was on the ACC Defensive Team. Davon Reed was on the All-ACC Academic Team.

Verizon Center Connections to the Hurricanes
Miami in the Verizon Center:
March 28, 2013, NCAA Tournament, Sweet 16: No. 15/16 Marquette 71, No. 5/4 Miami 61
March 10, 2005, ACC Tournament: 11-seed Virginia, 66, 6-seed Miami 65
Coach Jim Larrañaga, at George Mason in 2006
Sweet 16: George Mason 63, Wichita State 55
Elite 8: George Mason 86, Connecticut 84 OT

Miami in Tournament Play Under Coach L
Miami is 12-2 in tournament play over the past two seasons with a perfect 7-0 record in non-conference tournaments, a 1-1 mark in the ACC Tournament and a 4-1 record in the NIT. In five seasons under Coach L, Miami is 25-9 in tournament play, including regular and postseason.
2015-16: Puerto Rico Tip Off (3-0).
2014-15: Charleston Classic (4-0), ACC Tournament (1-1), NIT (4-1).
2013-14: Wooden Legacy (3-1), ACC Tournament (1-1).
2012-13: Diamond Head Classic (1-2), ACC Tournament (3-0), NCAA Tournament (2-1).
2011-12: Orange Bowl Classic (1-0), ACC Tournament (1-1), NIT (1-1).

All-ACC Awards for The Hurricanes
Coach Jim Larrañaga was named the ACC Coach of the Year for the second time in four seasons while three players earned postseason honors. Coach Jim Larrañaga – Coach of the Year (ACSMA/Coaches); Tonye Jekiri – All-Defensive Team (ACSMA/Coaches); Sheldon McClellan – Second Team All-ACC (ACSMA/Coaches); Angel Rodriguez – Third Team All-ACC (ACSMA); Tonye Jekiri – Honorable Mention (ACSMA/Coaches). Since joining the league in 2004-05, Miami has had 34 honorees on ACC postseason award lists, 21 of which have come under Coach L’s watch, including five of Miami’s six All-Defensive Team players. Jekiri is the only Hurricane to be named to that team twice.

Larrañaga Graduates Canes Student-Athletes
All four Hurricane seniors will be graduates of Miami following the 2015-16 campaign. Last May Sheldon McClellan earned his bachelor of liberal arts degree and in December Angel Rodriguez earned his bachelor’s of education degree with a major in sports administration and a minor in sociology, the same degree Ivan Cruz Uceda and Tonye Jekiri will both complete in May 2016.