Tough Test Up Next
Jan. 16 | 8 p.m. | ACCN
Watsco Center | Coral Gables, Fla.
Miami (5-6, 1-5 ACC) vs. No. 16/18 Louisville (9-1, 4-0 ACC)
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – After taking a step forward with an impressive 64-59 road win Saturday at NC State, the University of Miami men’s basketball team could not keep good times rolling.
The Hurricanes next went to Chestnut Hill, Mass., and fell victim to one of the most prolific 3-point shooting onslaughts in ACC history, as Boston College shot 18-of-35 from deep in an 84-62 triumph.
The Eagles connected on the second-most 3-pointers ever in an ACC game—trailing only a mark they set last year—and had two players score 25-plus points. Miami entered the contest No. 32 in KenPom defensive efficiency and left it 20 spots lower.
“We need to just try to stay positive, really, and just know that there are parts of our games that we need to work on and we’ve got to play through stuff,” Miami redshirt senior center Nysier Brooks said. “If they’re making shots, we’ve got to find a way to either make shots or get to the rim. If you get to the rim, you get fouled and you win tough games at the free-throw line.”
Brooks, who spent three years at Cincinnati and redshirted last season, is the most experienced player on the Hurricanes’ roster. He is also a team leader and one of its most vocal individuals, both on and off the court.
As Miami (5-6, 1-5 ACC) has struggled with injuries, close losses and, most recently, an opponent’s scintillating 3-point barrage, Brooks has tried to be a steadying voice for the Hurricanes.
The 7-foot, 240-pound Philadelphian has a consistent message he has been sharing with his teammates.
“Personally, I’ve just been trying to tell them, ‘Listen, just play hard. If you’re a shooter, shoot. If you’re a cutter, cut. If you’re a rebounder, rebound. If you’re a passer, pass,’” Brooks shared. “Trying to make it simple just for everybody to do their job … could be the best thing for us [to get back to] winning.”
Brooks was actually one of the bright spots for Miami in its loss at Silvio O. Conte Forum, as he scored a season-high 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
The big man connected on all six of his free-throw attempts, went 4-of-7 from the floor and added a beautiful assist.
“I just was trying to play my matchup,” Brooks said. “I knew that … they didn’t have any real shot-blockers, so I knew I could score over some of them. I tried to get a good position and just work on the game plan that Coach L had to feed into the paint.”
Senior guard Elijah Olaniyi also scored 14 points for the Hurricanes in the contest, while freshman guard Earl Timberlake added 12 and sophomore guard Harlond Beverly posted 10.
The former two of those are in their first year playing for Miami, as is Brooks, while Beverly is in his second. It has been a consistent trend for the Hurricanes this year that inexperienced players—either to the collegiate game or to the Miami program—are getting big minutes, largely due to injury.
With all four returning starters hurt and two out for the season, added minutes have been distributed to a bevy of players. In fact, 64.1 percent of available minutes have been played by freshmen or sophomores and another 20.6 percent have gone to transfers in their first year competing for Miami.
To Brooks, the youngsters and newbies getting so much playing time is one of the reasons the team has not lost hope about where this season is headed, especially when paired with the eventual returns of senior guards Chris Lykes and Kameron McGusty.
“We didn’t know that a couple guys were going to be out for the season and a few more guys were going to get hurt during the season, so it made the road a little bumpy,” Brooks said. “It’s just seasoned the younger players that might not have been in the starting lineup from the beginning of the season. It’s just getting them seasoned for when the older players come back, they get their groove back and then we’re playing and we’ve got a legit 10-man rotation where some have played big minutes this season and last season. And [at the point when] the big-minute guys come back and it’s just really an add-on for our offense and our defense.”
The Hurricanes now face a difficult test, both in terms of shaking off a sizable defeat and in opponent stature.
Miami returns to action Saturday night for a matchup with No. 16/18 Louisville. The Hurricanes and Cardinals, who are the top-ranked foe Miami has met thus far, will tip off at 8 p.m. at the Watsco Center.
Despite having a powerhouse program with a lofty ranking and a supberb 9-1 (4-0) record coming to town, Brooks knows, as a veteran, that he and his teammates cannot get too amped up and must prepare for this game like any other.
“Each opponent—it doesn’t matter who they are—we got to go into it being prepared to play hard and to really lock in on the details that the coaches are trying to express through the scouting report,” Brooks shared.
Miami is 4-13 all-time against Louisville, including 4-6 on its home court and 2-6 in 10th-year head coach Jim Larrañaga’s tenure. The Cardinals took the most recent matchup, a 74-58 home victory on Jan. 7, 2020, pulling away late after the Hurricanes sliced a 20-point deficit down to five in the closing minutes.
Brooks actually may have a longer familiarity with Louisville head coach Chris Mack than any other Hurricane, as his first two seasons at Cincinnati overlapped with Mack’s final two at Xavier.
The Bearcats and Musketeers have one of the fiercest rivalries in college basketball and meet each year. Brooks split his two meetings with Mack’s Xavier squad and also served on Miami’s scout team last season, during which the Hurricanes played Louisville twice.
“Chris Mack is a wonderful coach. He recruited me,” Brooks said. “I know that his big men will come to play. I know that for sure … from our Crosstown Shootout days. They had a couple bigs, but he’s always going to find spots for his shooters to get open and I know he’s going to play inside-out.”
Mack’s team this year is led by redshirt senior guard Carlik Jones, who leads the team in points (17.2), assists (4.7) and steals (1.1) per game, while also averaging 6.6 rebounds per outing and shooting 40.0 percent from 3-point range.
The Cardinals, who are currently the ACC’s second-highest-ranked team, were picked fifth in the league’s preseason poll after tallying a 24-7 (15-5) record last year.
Saturday’s action will be televised live on ACC Network HERE, with Jay Alter and Malcolm Huckaby on the call. Joe Zagacki and Danny Rabinowitz will have the radio broadcast on 560 The Joe WQAM HERE, while action can also be heard on WVUM 90.5 FM HERE and in Spanish on WMYM 990 AM HERE. Live stats for the contest can be found HERE.
After squaring off with the Cardinals, the Hurricanes hit the road to face Syracuse Tuesday at 7 p.m., with the game set to be broadcast live on ACC Network from the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.
To keep up with the University of Miami men’s basketball team on social media, follow @CanesHoops on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
The 2020-21 Miami Hurricanes men’s basketball season is presented by First National Bank.
