Is Jai Lucas’ gum superstition fueling UM’s surge? Here’s what he had to say
If the chewing gum brand “5” is looking for a new spokesperson, it might consider University of Miami men’s basketball coach Jai Lucas.
When asked about his constant gum-chewing on the sideline, Lucas smiled sheepishly and admitted that he is superstitious and must have two sticks of the green spearmint “5” gum during every game.
“It’s kind of a superstitious tic,” Lucas said. “I’ve been a gum chewer most of my coaching career, it’s never popped out. I do one to start the game and then a new one to start the second half. It’s a coaching superstition, probably means nothing. But in my mind, it does. One time we didn’t have green gum, we had blue and we lost. So, I can’t not have green gum anymore.”
Whatever Lucas is doing, it is working.
The Hurricanes are in third place in the Atlantic Coast Conference at 22-6 overall and 11-4 in the conference heading into the Saturday 2 p.m. home game against Boston College (10-18, 3-12 ACC). The 37-year-old coach has steered Miami to the biggest turnaround in Division 1 this season. Miami was 7-24 last season and finished in last place in the ACC at 3-17.
With three games remaining in the regular season, the Hurricanes are projected to get a double bye and automatic quarterfinal spot in the ACC tournament. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has Miami projected as a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Meanwhile, Boston College is jockeying for the 15th and final spot in the ACC tournament, which invites only 15 of the 18 teams. The Eagles are in a tiebreaker scenario with Notre Dame and Boston College.
“As you get toward the end of the season, these games are desperate for both teams,” Lucas said Friday. “For us, we’re fighting for a lot. They’re fighting for a lot in the sense of an opportunity to go to Charlotte to play in the conference tournament. They’re right there, so it’s not like their season is over. There’s still a lot on the line for them, too.”
While outsiders might be surprised the UM is among the top teams in the ACC, Lucas insists this was his expectation.
“This is kind of where I thought we would be,” he said. “I felt like we could be a top six team in the conference when everything was said and done, but we still aren’t there yet because everybody’s [basically] tied between third and ninth, so nothing is done. We just have to keep taking care of business, keep getting better and finding ways to win.”
That is what the Hurricanes did Tuesday night, holding off Florida State on the road for an 83-73 victory.
Malik Reneau racked up his eighth double-double of the season, and Tre Donaldson tallied 21 points in his hometown to help Miami avenge its home loss to the Seminoles earlier this season.
Miami snapped a six-game losing streak against the Seminoles, who had beaten the Hurricanes 15 of their past 16 games. Reneau finished with 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting and 12 rebounds. Tru Washington, Ernest Udeh and Dante Allen made big contributions.
Miami held a 42-23 rebounding advantage, turning 16 offensive boards into 25 second-chance points. It outscored the Seminoles 42-30 in the paint.
But Lucas was upset with the Hurricanes’ 18 turnovers, which led to 26 FSU points.
When asked if the gum-chewing was his secret to success, Lucas said, “The real secret is if I can get us to take care of the ball because we should have won [the FSU game] by at least 15 to 20. We scored 83 points with 18 turnovers. It should have been a 105-point game.
“For us to win by 10 and still have 18 turnovers, and they got 26 points from that. I told the team, if we cut that in half and get nine turnovers, and they get 16 points off turnovers, it’s a 20-point game.”
Lucas stressed to his players that there are three things they must do heading into March: control the glass, take care of the ball and defend without fouling.
“Those three things, and you’re going to win,” he said.
Freshman Shelton Henderson, who went down with an apparent knee injury against FSU before returning to the court, is expected to be ready for the game Saturday.
“He’s fine,” Lucas said. “He was just a little scared. He tweaked it a little bit, but nothing serious. He got all the imaging and stuff done, and should be good.”
This story was originally published February 27, 2026 at 3:28 PM.