CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami men’s basketball team’s next road trip, a visit to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., is an exciting one.
However, before looking forward to its next game, a team must always look back at its most recent one.
For Miami (7-3, 1-0 ACC) that was a review of its 76-59 victory over Lipscomb Wednesday night at the Watsco Center. The Hurricanes dominated the game for the final 26 minutes on their way to a third consecutive win.
“First of all, there were three things that we really needed to emphasize at the defensive end of the floor,” Miami head coach Jim Larrañaga said. “We needed to defend the three, we needed to defend the cuts because they move very well without the ball and we needed to defend the low post.
“After analyzing the statistics and the video, they only scored twice out of 26 times on cuts, they only scored once out of five times on a low-post feed and they shot 7-of-28 from three,” he continued. “So, the three things that we emphasized, we defended very, very well.”
Fourth-year junior guard Jordan Miller keyed the Hurricanes’ defensive effort, totaling seven rebounds, five steals and three blocks. He also posted 12 points and two assists at the other end, becoming just the second Division I player this season to reach all of those figures.
Miami, as a team, also excelled on offense against the Bisons. It shot over 50 percent from the floor in both halves and finished with a 51.6 percent clip on the evening.
Two players, in particular, led the way: sixth-year redshirt senior guard Kameron McGusty and third-year sophomore guard Isaiah Wong.
McGusty shot 12-of-19 overall, 4-of-7 from deep and 1-of-1 at the line, finishing with a career-high 29 points. His 12 made field goals also set a career high—as did his three blocked shots on the defensive side of the floor—while his four made 3-pointers put him one off his career best.
Wong, meanwhile, totaled 20 points on a blistering 9-of-13 mark from the floor. He went 8-of-9 inside the arc, as he repeatedly created quality shots off the bounce.
“Well, believe it or not, that’s actually kind of an expectation that we have for both of them throughout this year,” Larrañaga said of the duo. “They’re both high-octane scorers and very good players who can play off of each other. They play very well together. We can rest one and the other one can carry us for a while. And when you add Charlie Moore to our backcourt, we actually have three outstanding, double-figure scorers.”