MBB Opens Wooden Legacy Thursday Against La Salle
November 22, 2018 | 2:30 p.m. ET/11:30 a.m. PT
Titan Gym | Fullerton, Calif.
Miami (3-0) vs. La Salle (0-4)
Tournament Bracket | Roster | Coaches | Schedule | Game Notes
FULLERTON, Calif. – The University of Miami men’s basketball team heads to the West Coast Thursday through Sunday to compete in the 2018 Wooden Legacy, held at Titan Gym on the campus of Cal State Fullerton in Fullerton, Calif. The Hurricanes (3-0) play La Salle (0-4) Thursday at 2:30 p.m. ET/11:30 a.m. PT in the tournament’s opening game.
The Canes are guaranteed to play three games. UM takes on Northwestern (3-0) or Fresno State (1-1) Friday. After a day off Saturday, the tournament concludes Sunday. The four teams on the other side of the bracket are Grand Canyon (3-1), Hawai’i (3-1), Seton Hall (1-2) and Utah (3-0).
The Miami-La Salle game is being televised on ESPNU, while the Canes’ radio broadcast airs on WQAM 560-AM and also streams online on HurricaneSports.com.
Things to Know
• Chris Lykes is the first UM player since 1989 to score 20 or more points in each of the first three games.
• Miami is shooting 40.7 percent from 3-point range and has hit 33 3-pointers in its first three games.
• Lykes, DJ Vasiljevic and Anthony Lawrence each have scored in double figures in every game this season.
• Ebuka Izundu recorded 19 rebounds last Tuesday – most in the Jim Larrañaga era and most at UM since Reggie Johnson had 20 vs. FAU on March 16, 2011.
• Miami is 14-6 in ESPN Events tournaments under Jim Larrañaga.
• Junior forward Dewan Hernandez has been withheld from competition as the University and NCAA review his eligibility. His status for the Wooden Legacy is TBD.
Miami grinded out a 78-70 win over Bethune-Cookman Saturday to improve to 3-0 on the year. The Canes shot just 28 percent in the first half but rebounded to hit on 53 percent of its second-half attempts to pick up the win. Lykes led Miami with 21 points, while DJ Vasiljevic matched a career high with 20 points. The Canes are 85.7 ppg while giving up 63.3 per game.
After cracking the 20-point barrier in each of the first three games, Lykes leads Miami in scoring at 21.0 ppg. He also is averaging 5.3 assists per contest. Vasiljevic (17.7), Anthony Lawrence II (16.7) and Izundu (12.3) also are averaging in double figures.
Miami has played five of the seven programs in the Wooden Legacy previously, including posting wins over La Salle and Hawai’i last year. The Canes have not faced Seton Hall since 2004 when the programs were Big East rivals. Miami has not faced Fresno State or Grand Canyon previously. The Canes’ records against the others: Hawai’I (4-1), La Salle (8-9), Northwestern (0-1), Seton Hall (8-15), Utah (2-0).
Miami and La Salle are playing for the fifth time in the last six seasons. The Hurricanes won each of the previous four meetings, including a 57-46 win over the Explorers one year to the day of this game on Nov. 22, 2017, in a neutral-site contest in Reading, Pa., home of former UM standout Lonnie Walker IV. La Salle holds a 9-8 edge in the all-time series, including taking nine of the programs’ 13 games from 1951-70. Jim Larrañaga is 4-0 in his career against La Salle.
Under first-year head coach Ashley Howard, La Salle has dropped its first four games, although three of the four have come by eight points or fewer. Pookie Powell leads the Explorers in scoring at 20.5 ppg, while Isiah Dees is averaging 15.5 ppg. La Salle is averaging 74 ppg while allowing 80.8 ppg.
Miami returns home Wednesday to play Rutgers in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. Game time is 7:15 p.m. at the Watsco Center.
To keep up with the University of Miami men’s basketball team on social media, follow @CanesHoops on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
