The Miami Hurricanes host the Virginia Cavaliers in their biggest game of the season. Miami can all but stamp their spot in the NCAA Tournament with a victory.
The Miami Hurricanes currently are seeded seventh by the Bracket Matrix. That is a composite of about 100 bracketology websites. A win over Virginia would be by far the biggest on Miami’s resume this season.
The Hurricanes are coming off a disappointing loss at Boston College on Saturday. Miami failed to score in the last 6:27. The Eagles went on a 9-0 run in that time span to secure a 72-70 victory over the Hurricanes.
Virginia travels to Coral Gables also coming off of a loss at Virginia Tech in overtime on Saturday. In spite of the loss, the Cavaliers still ascended to the Nation’s number one ranking for the first time in over 35 years in the AP Poll. They fell from second to third in the AP Media Poll.
Under Tony Bennett, Virginia is known for their defense. They are arguably the best defensive team in the nation this season. The Miami Hurricanes frequently prefer a more deliberate pace than their opponents. Against Virginia, they are likely to prefer more uptempo.
The Cavaliers are in the top ten Nationally in 11 categories defensively. That includes leading the country defensively in six. Among those are three-point field goals made, three-point field percentage against the points per game against. Teams are averaging just 53.2 points per game against Virginia.
Although UVA plays a deliberate style they can be a highly efficient team offensively. The Cavaliers are 51st nationally in three-point percentage and 21st in free throw shooting. Miami is going to have to get out and defend the three. They struggled to defend the three in ACC games frequently this season.
Due to their deliberate style Virginia in 298th in the country in scoring. Only two Cavaliers average in double figures. Kyle Guy is averaging 15.3 points per game and shoots Devon Hall is second in scoring at 12.5 PPG, shoots 46 percent on threes and is second on the Cavs in rebounding at 4.2 per game.
Miami had its biggest win of the 2016-17 season in Charlottesville. That was likely the win that got them to the NCAA Tournament. It could be the same if they win this year too. In front of the home crowd, this would be the biggest win of 2016-17.
Busting Brackets
GAME 25 • FEB. 13, 2018 • 9 P.M. ET • CORAL GABLES, FLA., Watsco Center (7,972
1/3 VIRGINIA CAVALIERS (23-2, 12-1 ACC)
Head Coach: Tony Bennett (Green Bay, 1992)
Record at UVA: 211-85 (9th season), Career Record: 280-118 (12th season)
MIAMI HURRICANES (18-6, 7-5 ACC)
Head Coach: Jim Larrañaga (Providence, 1971 [B.A.])
Record at UM: 157-75 (7th season), Career Record: 627-409 (34th season)
On the Air:
Television: ESPN; Online: WatchESPN
Rece Davis (PxP), LaPhonso Ellis (analyst),
Laura Rutledge (reporter)
Radio: WQAM 560-AM (Joe Zagacki – PxP)
Satellite Radio: Sirius 81/XM 81 (Internet 81)
Series vs. UVA: Miami leads, 12-9
Home: 7-1 | Road: 4-6 | Neutral: 1-2
Next: How does release of In-season NCAA bracket affect Miami Hurricanes?
Next Game: Miami hosts 17-8 Syracuse on Saturday. The Orange are currently 6-6 in the ACC a game behind Miami as play starts Wednesday night. It will be a big game for positioning in the standings and seeding for the ACC Tournament. The Orange host North Carolina State on Wednesday night.