'Canes 2nd Half Eruption Sends Hawaii Over the Rainbow; Win 73-58.

Reggie Johnson,, who has been playing with a 5,000-pound chip on his shoulder, was held out of the contest with a thumb injury (not flight-related) and Julian Gamble (16pts, 13reb, 2blk) stepped in and had one of the best games of his college career. Gamble was relentless on the boards and cleaned up errant 'Cane shots.

Early on, the 'Canes couldn't hit anything. Miami shot 1-10 from beyond the arc in the first frame. Gamble's play was a big part of Miami being able to take a 1-point halftime lead into the locker room. Whatever Coach Larranaga said to his team at the half worked to perfection.

The 'Canes let loose an offensive explosion with an 11-4 run to start the 2nd half. Particularly ridiculous was Durand Scott (20pts, 1reb, 5ast, 3stl) who connected on 4-consecutive 3's that buried Hawaii under layers of stratified lava. Usually, Scott is more inclined to attack the rim, but the Rainbow Warrior zone did a good job keeping him on the perimeter.

Rion Brown (6pts, 1reb, 1ast, 2stl), who usually looks to bomb away from 3-point land, seemed to switch personalities with the normally-slashing Scott. Brown converted a few drives to the hoop while he continues to find his range from long distance. Shane Larkin (12pts, 2reb, 1ast, 3stl) scored in spurts and pestered Hawaii's ball-handlers all game long.

2nd Half Metaphor Footage: 'Canes = Dragon; Rainbow Warriors = Foolish Warrior

Player of the Game: Julian Gamble. Dude went off.

Points of Interest: Reggie Johnson listed as day-to-day and his thumb was heavily wrapped. It appears as though the Swiss Army Knife has a heal button as Trey McKinney-Jones (11pts, 4reb, 2ast, 1stl), recovered from running a scarily-high fever in time for tip-off.

Next Game: The 'Canes take on the #4 Arizona Wildcats tonight at 11:30EST on ESPN2.