Live Game Thread and Preview: Miami Basketball At North Carolina

DATE: Monday, February 26, 2024

WHERE: Chapel Hill, NC, Dean E. Smith Center

TIME/TV: 7:00 PM EST/ESPN

LIVE AUDIO: 560 WQAM

MIAMI: Official Website | Schedule | Roster | Stats | Twitter

NORTH CAROLINA: Official Website | Schedule | Roster | Stats | Twitter

LINE: NORTH CAROLINA -13.5

Miami (15-13, 6-11 ACC) lost to Georgia Tech 80-76 at home in its last game.

North Carolina (21-6, 13-3, ACC) defeated Virginia 54-44 in its last contest.

Series History

North Carolina has come out on top in 27 of the 37 games played between the programs and holds a 12-5 advantage when playing in Chapel Hill. However, Miami won the last game in the Dean Dome, 80-72, on Feb. 13, 2023.

Earlier this season, then-third-ranked North Carolina narrowly left Coral Gables with a 75-72 victory. Fourth-year juniors Nijel Pack and Norchad Omier each recorded 20-point outings in the loss.

Last Game

Miami recorded its sixth consecutive loss on Saturday, an 80-76 defeat at the hands of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

Freshman Kyshawn George and junior Bensley Joseph led the Hurricanes on offense, pouring in 16 points each. Juniors Wooga Poplar and Mattew Cleveland joined the pair in double-figures with 14 and 10 points, respectively.

Saturday marked just the third time this year (out of 11 games) Miami has lost when tallying 15-plus assists (19).

Notable Miami Statistics

A 2024 Karl Malone Top-10 candidate, Omier has emerged as one of the best players in the nation. He is one of five Division I players (Zach Edey, Hunter Dickinson, Enrique Freeman, Riley Minix) averaging 17 points, 9.7 rebounds, and a .550 field goal percentage this season.

The Hurricanes are 24-6 (.884) when Omier has a double-double since he joined the team (2022-23).

Omier has been one of the most dominant players in the ACC this season, ranking in the top 10 in six statistical categories. He is the only player to sit in the top seven in scoring and rebounding and is one of 16 players to record a 30-point game this season.

Nationally, Omier is one of seven players to average 17.0 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, doing so in games played by all seven players. Omier also has the third-highest true shooting percentage (includes 2FG, 3FG, and FT) of the six players at .644.

No team has had more success on Tobacco Road since 2010-11 than Miami. Since Coach Jim Larranaga came to Miami, the Hurricanes have seven combined wins at Duke and at North Carolina, which is tied with Duke for the most road victories among ACC teams at those two schools. The next closest for combined wins are Virginia and North Carolina at five apiece.

During Coach Larrañaga’s 13 seasons at Miami, the Hurricanes are 16-21 (15-17 ACC) against blue bloods Duke (8-11) and North Carolina (8-11). Before his arrival, Miami was 4-31 (2-17 ACC, 1-15 away) against the two, including 2-20 in its ACC era. Miami has a win over at least one of them in 10 of Coach L’s 12 years, topping both in 2012-13 (four total), 2016-17, 2021-22 and 2022-23.

Miami will face its fifth-ranked opponent when it takes on No. 10/9 North Carolina. The Hurricanes are 68-189 all-time against AP Top 25 opponents, including 1-3 this season. Miami is 25-94 against top-10 teams and 9-41 when playing those teams on the road. Thirteen of the 25 top-10 victories have come under Coach Larrañaga.

Injuries have plagued the Hurricanes this year as Miami has missed a starter in 10 of 17 ACC games. The Hurricanes are 2-8 in ACC games without a starter and 0-5 when playing on the road. With all starters playing, Miami holds a 4-3 ACC record and a 2-1 away record.

The Hurricanes are seeking their first road victory in over a month (last came at Notre Dame on Jan. 24).

Good things happen for the Hurricanes when they:

> Record 15 or more assists (8-3)

> Shoot 50% or better from the field (8-1)

> Score 80-plus points (9-1)

> Hold opponent to 69 points or less (8-1)

> Have four players score in double-digits (13-4)

The Opponent

Notable North Carolina Statistics

North Carolina enters Saturday’s contest as the best team in the ACC, holding a 13-3 mark in conference play and a 21-6 overall record. Two of the Tar Heels six losses have come in February against Clemson and Syracuse.

RJ Davis paces North Carolina in scoring (21.0), while Armando Bacot is the only ACC player to average a double-double (14.4 points, 10.1 rebounds) this year.

Davis leads the ACC in scoring at 21.0 points per game and is second in three-pointers per game (3.1). Davis has made 83 threes in 27 games, which is on pace to set single-season school records for most threes (105 by Justin Jackson in 2016-17) and most 3FGs per game (2.71 by Shammond Williams in 1996-97).

Carolina leads the ACC in rebounding. Bacot and Harrison Ingram rank one-two in all games, while Ingram leads and Bacot is second in league action. They are the first pair of Tar Heels to average nine or more rebounds since John Henson and Tyler Zeller in 2011-12.

UNC is 11-1 in the Smith Center this season, while Miami is 2-7 on the road.

Miami Athletics and North Carolina Athletics Contributed to this report

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