UM coach Tricia Cullop battles through a cold, Hurricanes lose 70-55 to Clemson
University of Miami women’s basketball coach Tricia Cullop was under the weather and lost her voice but was determined to be on the bench Sunday afternoon for a tough conference game against Clemson.
Wearing a mask and delivering plays through hand signals and associate head coach Jessie Ivey, Cullop was animated as always, but the Hurricanes did not match her energy. They unraveled in the fourth quarter and lost 70-55.
“Everyone appreciates her being here for the team,” said associate head coach Fitzroy Anthony. “At the end of the day, she could have stayed home, and she sucked it up and was here for the team. So, I was disappointed that we didn’t dig deep and find a win, but we appreciate the fact that she came to battle with us.”
UM guard Amarachi Simpson hit a three to tie the game 46-46 with 9:20 remaining, but the Tigers took over after that. They went on a 19-4 run and stretched their lead to 15 points with three minutes to play.
Miami had no answers for Clemson senior forward Raven Thompson. She scorched the Canes with a game-high 24 points on 10-of-12 shooting. She went 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and punished the Hurricanes in the paint, too.
“That’s two years in a row, we talked about closing out to her, getting to her as a shooter, post up against her, so that’s disappointing,” Anthony said. “It was on the scouting report, so it’s not like that was a surprise. We’ve just got to be better from a defensive standpoint.”
The Hurricanes led 28-26 at halftime, but Clemson immediately took over the lead in the third quarter with a trio of threes and never trailed again.
“They came out in the third quarter and jumped on us,” Anthony said. “At that point we were up, and you get comfortable and stop doing the things that got you there. It’s a focus thing. We have a team that competes and plays hard, but down the stretch, we need to be more focused.”
He pointed out that Miami gave up 16 points in the first quarter, 10 in the second, and then 20 and 24 in the third and fourth quarters.
“That’s unacceptable,” Anthony said. “You don’t give up 20 points and 24 points in the third and fourth quarter when it’s winning time.”
Clemson had 12 offensive rebounds to seven for Miami and 20 second-chance points to seven for UM. The Tigers got 17 points off UM turnovers and hit 12 three-point baskets.
“Down the stretch, they made tougher plays,” Anthony said. “We’ve got to do a better job of closing out on shooters. It’s an effort thing.”
Demeara Hinds had 13 points for the Tigers and Rusne Augustinaite added 12. Clemson improved to 11-5 overall and 2-2 in ACC play.
The only two UM players who scored in double digits were Ra Shaya Kyle, with 12 points and nine rebounds, and Gal Raviv, with 12 points.
The Hurricanes entered the day riding a four-game winning streak after a mid-week 75-67 overtime road victory at Virginia Tech.
Kyle led the Hurricanes in that comeback win, posting 23 points and 13 rebounds for her 10th double-double of the season. Raviv scored 18 points, including a critical three-pointer late in regulation.
UM (10-5, 2-2 ACC) is back home Thursday for a 3 p.m. game against 13th ranked Louisville. The game was originally scheduled for 7 p.m., but it was moved up due to the Hurricane football team’s national semifinal game against Ole Miss at the Fiesta Bowl that night.
“Louisville is one of the best teams in the country; it’s an opportunity for our team,” Anthony said. “Right now, the girls are going to be down about this loss in the locker room. But we’ve got Louisville coming down and if we knock them off, it wouldn’t feel that bac. Let’s fix the things we didn’t do well [Sunday] against a ranked opponent. That will help our resume. We’re excited about that.”
This story was originally published January 4, 2026 at 4:48 PM.