Miami men’s, women’s basketball teams hit the road for tourneys. Here are the details
Coach Jim Larranaga is about to learn a whole lot more about his University of Miami basketball team as the Hurricanes head to Charleston, South Carolina, to play three games over four days in the Charleston Classic.
The Hurricanes (3-1) play their first game Thursday at 11:30 a.m. against Missouri State (2-2) at the TD Arena. The University of Florida plays St. Joseph’s in the other half of the bracket, and the winners face each other Friday at noon. On Sunday, the Canes play Buffalo, Connecticut, Towson State or No. 18 Xavier.
“Every team presents a different set of challenges, and while Louisville was very skilled and athletic, Missouri State is the most athletic team we’ve faced so far,” Larranaga said. “They rely on their athleticism to create scoring opportunities, whether it’s driving to the basket or with offensive rebounds. They like the game to be physical and in the paint.”
Miami heads to the tournament after an 80-52 home victory over Quinnipiac last Saturday. The Canes went 11-of-15 from 3-point range in the second half, setting a program record for 3-point makes in a half against a Division I opponent in the ACC era (2004-present).
Redshirt junior guard Kam McGusty, who transferred from the University of Oklahoma and sat out last season, led all scorers with a career-high-tying 22 points. Senior guard D.J. Vasiljevic had his second double-double with 13 points and a career-high-tying 10 rebounds. Junior guard Chris Lykes scored 12 points and freshman guard Harlond Beverly added 10.
Larranaga has been pleased with McGusty’s contribution to the team. At 6-5, he can play three positions, handle the ball, drive to the basket and shoot from the perimeter. Freshman Harlond Beverly is also a “Jack of all trades,” said Larranaga, and has proven he has good court vision and can find the open man to create offense for teammates.
Lykes “showed real growth” in the Quinnipiac game and at practice Monday and Tuesday, Larranaga said, especially on the defensive end. “I hope what I saw are signs of what we’ll see from Chris the remainder of the season. If he does that, it changes everything for us.”
Vasiljevic, as the lone senior, is also encouraged by the team’s improvement since the loss to Louisville in the opener.
“Coach L has been stressing that we improve on defensive rebounding because we were getting beat there, and we did that against Quinnipiac,” Vasiljevic said. “Guys have been getting after the ball in practice and we will have to do that against Missouri State because they are tough and aggressive.”
Following its three games in Charleston, the Hurricanes will play on the road against Illinois in Champaign, Ill., Dec. 2 at 9 p.m. in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Larranaga is hopeful that University of Florida transfer Keith Stone will be ready to play against the Illini after recovering from knee surgery. He has been cleared to practice, and coaches and teammates are impressed with what they have seen.
The 16th-ranked UM women’s team is also heading out of town for the Maggie Dixon Classic in Chicago. The Hurricanes (3-0) play North Carolina A&T (2-2) on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. and face either DePaul or Arkansas State on Friday. Miami is coming off a 74-65 win over IUPUI. Endia Banks scored a career-high 23 points and had five steals and four assists. Beatrice Mompremier had her second double-double of the season with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Mykea Gray scored 16 fourth-quarter points.