3 Keys to Victory: Miami Basketball Vs Georgia Tech

On paper, this looks like a total mismatch.

The Yellow Jackets are struggling at 0-7 in the conference (dead last), and just 9-10 overall.

GT shoots just 40% from the floor as a team, including an abysmal 25% from three, and they put up just 63 points per game good for 277th best in the country.

However, a closer look of Tech reveals a team that pushed #8 Notre Dame to double OT on 1/3, only to give the Irish fits again in a 3 point loss just two weeks later.  GT also has close losses to Wake Forest, BC, and Syracuse.

Marcus Georges-Hunt is a talented wing (think poor man's Sheldon McClellan) who averages 12.9 ppg.

And while former UM verbal commit SG Chris Bolden has struggled this year with his shooting, he is a streaky player that can get hot at any time.

GT also sports a pair of bruising big men in Demarco Cox and Charles Mitchell.

So how can Miami avoid the upset and stay on track in the very competitive upper half of the Atlantic Coast Conference?

Here are my 3 keys:

#1 Do more than just show up - Against Green Bay and particularly Eastern Kentucky, the 'Canes looked listless early. With all due respect to those teams, Miami beat themselves by thinking all they had to do was show up and they would win.  UM is at their worst when they do not work had to find shoots (no ball movement) and end up shooting forced deep triples. They compound it when things are going bad by not getting back on defense. If the ball is not moving and the transition D is lacking, the Hurricanes can lose to anyone. Avoid those two bugaboos and they can beat nearly anyone.

#2 Support Jekiri on the glass -  Tonye Jekiri is averaging 34% of all UM boards.  And for the most part, that is not a problem.  After all TJ leads the entire conference in rebounding. But if there is one thing the Jackets do well, it is muscle you inside. With all the misses their perimeter shooters usually launch they also get a lot of chances for offensive rebounds, and they grab a decent amount.  Miami needs Omar Sherman, Ivan Cruz Uceda, and the guards to give TJ some support down low.

# 3 Stay balanced offensively -  When you have shooters like Angel Rodriguez, Manu Lecomte, James Palmer, and Davon Reed among others, it is easy to fall into the trap of launching three after three. But when Miami gets inside, gets in transition, scores off the bounce, and has variety to their offense, they are much harder to stop. No doubt UM is dangerous from deep, but they are much better when they supplement with some dunks and lay ins as well. They also shouldn't be afraid to dump the ball in the post every so often to Jekiri, to keep the D honest.

Well there you have it 'Canes fans, if Miami plays as hard as they have been, crashes the boards, and doesn't rely too heavily on threes,  they should keep GT win-less in the conference.

Enjoy the game, 'Canes fans.

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