This Week in Miami Hurricanes Basketball: 2/13 Edition

What a great game to cap off the 2022-23 NFL season. Mahomes was incredible; you just can’t bet against him. How hurt was his ankle? Who knows? Tough loss for Philly. Jalen Hurts is a true competitor and played an awesome game besides his one fumble. One last thought: can we get the turf thing right? Guys were slipping and sliding all over the place. I mean, it’s only the 57th Super Bowl. And it’s only the year 2023. Sheesh.

We’re back for another week of Miami Hurricanes Men’s and Women’s Basketball. The guys won two home games: Monday against Duke and Saturday against Louisville. The ladies split their two games. They topped FSU at home on Thursday night, then lost at Duke on Sunday.

How high will the guys be ranked in the new AP Top 25 Poll this afternoon?! I think they’ll be #15 or #16.

Last week:

I recapped Miami’s dominating 81-59 win over Duke. The Canes controlled the game from the opening tip. It was a stress-free viewing experience for me. The Blue Devils got within 9 points midway through the first half, and that was as close as it got. The Canes led by 14 points at halftime and never looked back. I loved that Miami scored 41 points in the second half. They knew they needed to keep pushing on offense, and that is exactly what they did. Great home win.

I also recapped Miami’s 93-85 narrow victory over Louisville. This game was way closer than it should’ve been. The Canes are far more talented than the Cardinals. No matter, the former powerhouse looked like a decent team on Saturday night at the Watsco Center. I should be more specific: Louisville looked like a decent team on offense. They got wide-open shot after wide-open shot. The numbers don’t lie: 33-57 from the field (57.9%) and 10-23 from three-point range (43.5%). Luckily for Coach L and his guys, the Cardinals couldn’t get a stop on defense to save their lives and turned the ball over too many times. My positive spin is that Saturday’s performance focuses and motivates Miami to come out tonight determined on the defensive end against a talented and offensively dynamic UNC squad.

The Lady Canes began their week with a thrilling come-from-behind victory against rival Florida State. Miami trailed by 11 points at halftime. Considering their trend of not overcoming deficits, it should have been a done deal. Not so fast! Miami won the second half by 15 points to secure the 86-82 win. Haley Cavinder went off for the Canes, scoring a career-high 33 points by shooting 7-10 from three-point range and 10-10 from the free-throw line. Jasmyne Roberts continued her hot streak, chipping in 19 points and 6 rebounds. Makayla Timpson led FSU with 19 points and 9 rebounds.

What a huge win! The Noles are a talented team that is bound for the NCAA Women’s Tournament. The Watsco Center was electric for this contest; there’s no doubt Cavinder fed off that energy. Miami’s third win against a ranked team couldn’t have come at a better time.

The ladies of Miami could not keep their winning streak going yesterday, losing 50-40 at Duke. The Canes dug themselves and early hole and could not get out of it, despite outscoring the Blue Devils in the second half. The Lady Canes faced a 19-point halftime deficit that was too much to overcome. Duke’s defense was suffocating all game long; no wonder they are the number one team in the ACC this season. Jasmyne Roberts led Miami with 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists. Haley Cavinder scored 10 points, but had 0 assists. Reigan Richardson led Duke with 14 points.

The Lady Canes have four games left: vs Clemson, at Syracuse, at Louisville, and vs Virginia. None of those teams are ranked in the AP Top 25. Miami is 9-5 in ACC play. They need to go 3-1 to finish the season in order to have a chance at a high seed in this year’s ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament. Coach Meier needs to do her best coaching these last two weeks.

This week:

The guys play twice this week. They have a quick turnaround from Saturday’s win, traveling to Chapel Hill, NC to take on UNC tonight, 2/13 at 7:00 PM EST. The game will be televised on ESPN. The Tar Heels got a much needed twenty-point win at home on Saturday against Clemson after losing three games in a row. Omier vs Bacot. Let’s go! The Canes then come home to host Wake Forest on Saturday, 2/18 at 2:00 PM EST. I see ACC Extra for television coverage. In my area of North Florida, that means it’s a Bally Sports game. Noooo! Looks like I will be attempting to use my wife’s email for a new free trial. (Deep sigh). The Demon Deacons escaped a home-upset loss to Georgia Tech on Saturday. To be honest, I’d be more scared of Wake coming off a bad loss to GT; they don’t play a game until their matchup with Miami this weekend.

The ladies play two very winnable games this week. They first host Clemson on Thursday, 2/16 at 6:00 PM EST. The game will be televised on ACC Extra / Bally Sports South. Miami looks for the season sweep against the Tigers after their overtime win earlier this month. The Lady Canes then travel to upstate New York to take on Syracuse on Sunday, 2/19 at 1:00 PM EST. The game will be televised on ACC Extra / Bally Sports South. The Orange play three ranked teams (UNC, ND, FSU) before hosting Miami. Coach Meier’s squad needs a 2-0 week to remain towards the top of the ACC standings.

GO CANES!