5 Takeaways from UM’s 96-58 win over Stephen F. Austin
Five takeaways from the University of Miami Hurricanes’ 96-58 win over Stephen F. Austin on Tuesday night at the Watsco Center.
1. If Ebuka Izundu continues to play like he did against the Lumberjacks, the Hurricanes’ inside game is going to be formidable.
The 6-10 senior center worked on his strength and endurance in the off-season, and it showed. Izundu hit career highs in points (22), rebounds (18), field goals made (11), blocks (4), assists (3) and minutes (32). Izundu went 11-of-13 from the field and grabbed 11 offensive rebounds, just three fewer than the entire Stephen F. Austin team. He also had three steals and only two fouls, which was notable from a guy known to collect fouls early in his career.
“Buka was terrific,” said UM coach Jim Larranaga. “He was very aggressive on both ends, blocking shots, defensive rebounds, his little jump hook inside. He has a wonderful touch. Some of those shots he makes, he makes them look like they’re routine, but they’re not...It was nice to not only have him score 22 points, but also to get 18 rebounds.”
Larranaga said he has known for quite some time that Izundu had the skill to play that way.
“He played tonight like he normally plays when we’re in the state of North Carolina. If you watch his game against North Carolina State last several years, or at Chapel Hill last year or at Notre Dame last year. He’s always been very, very capable. He’s much stronger now. He doesn’t get moved easily, and I think his teammates are very, very confident in him.”
Said Izundu: “My teammates got me the ball early, and every time I kept scoring. I felt like everything was working for me in the first half. I worked on everything in the offseason, getting stronger, get my endurance up, I worked out every day.”
2. Grad transfer Zach Johnson was a good off-season pick-up, and will likely have a big impact on the team. The Miami Norland High alum, who transferred from Florida Gulf Coast University, played 28 minutes off the bench and finished with 15 points and four assists.
Larranaga sent Johnson a text Monday night, challenging him.
“The last game I didn’t think he was as aggressive as we needed him to be, so Monday night, I texted him: `Just play like you practiced,’ because he was sensational at practice Monday,” the coach said. “You looked at him like `Oh, goodness.’ He was shooting, handling it, defending, creating shots for others, creating shots for himself. And I thought he played that way (Tuesday). I think he had even more assists than they had him recorded for.”
3. The guard play should encourage UM coaches and fans. Chris Lykes, the 5-foot-7 electric point guard, scored 20 points and had six assists, three steals and just one turnover. Anthony Lawrence had 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting with three assists. DJ Vasiljevic, slimmed down from last season, had 17 points, and Johnson added 15.
The guards took good care of the ball. Miami didn’t have a single turnover in the first half, and the three starting guards (Lykes, Lawrence, Vasiljevic) had just one turnover each for the night.
4. Miami continued to take a lot of three-point shots. Larranaga said before the season that the Hurricanes would shoot a lot from the perimeter, and his prediction has proved correct so far. In the first game against Lehigh, they hit 14 three-pointers — three shy of a school single-game record. On Tuesday, they made 11 of 23 attempts from beyond the arc.
Vasiljevic had four, Johnson had three, Lawrence and Lykes had two apiece.
5. Still no word on how long junior forward Dewan Hernandez (formerly Huell) will be held out of games. The top returning scorer on the team has yet to play, as the school and NCAA check into his eligibility after his name surfaced in connection with agent Christian Dawkins, who was linked to the FBI investigation into college basketball. Hernandez was on the bench, cheering for his teammates.
This story was originally published November 13, 2018 at 10:37 PM.