Miami basketball travels to Notre Dame trying for fourth straight win
The Miami basketball team travels to Notre Dame in the second of a three-game road trip in search of its third straight win. Now healthy the Hurricanes are playing their best basketball of the 2019-20 season.
With nine scholarship players available to Jim Larranaga the Miami basketball team has won their last two games, to stretch their winning streak to three games overall. Redshirt junior Sam Waardenburg missed the Hurricanes victory over Boston College. He was back in the lineup for wins over Wake Forest and Virginia Tech.
The story for Miami over the last eight games has been the play of freshman guard Isaiah Wong. After not scoring in double figures in the first 18 games of the season, Wong is averaging 17.5 points per game, shooting 53.8 percent from the floor, 50 percent on three-point attempts and making 91.5 percent of his free throws.
Wong had put up 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists over the past eight games. Miami is 4-4 during the surge by Wong. Wong had his best performance of his young Miami Basketball career during the Hurricanes 102-95 triple-overtime victory at Virginia Tech on Wednesday night. Wong finished with 27 points against the Hokies.
The freshman from Philadelphia added 12 rebounds and made all 14 of his free throws. Twice Wong made jump shots to in the final 10 seconds to keep a victory alive for Miami. Wong is firmly entrenched in the Hurricanes starting lineup as they hope to keep winning to get into the postseason discussion.
"GAME 27 | FEB. 23, 2020 • 6 P.M. ET • NOTRE DAME, IND.Miami Hurricanes (14-12, 6-10 ACC)Head Coach: Jim Larrañaga (Providence, 1971)Record at UM: 189-109 (ninth season), Career Record: 659-443 (36th season)Notre Dame Fighting Irish (16-10, 7-8 ACC)Head Coach: Mike Brey (George Washington, 1982)Record at ND: 433-231 (20th season), Career Record: 532-283 (25th season)Courtesy HurricaneSports.Com"
The three-game Miami winning streak has moved the Hurricanes out of the cellar in the ACC and into 12th place. Miami is a half-game behind Virginia Tech who they swept for 11th and a game behind Boston College who the Hurricanes defeated last weekend for ninth place. The bottom four teams play in the first round.
If Miami can move up one spot they will avoid playing on the first day which makes a deep run much more possible. The Hurricanes have shown that when they are healthy they can be an elite offensive team. Miami has games at Georgia Tech, and home against Virginia and Syracuse to end the 2020 regular season.
"SERIES HISTORYAll-Time: 12-11 (12-11 since rebirth) | Home: 6-5 | Away: 5-5 | Neutral: 1-1 | Coach L: 5-4 (5-3 at Miami)Streak: Won 2 | Last Meeting: 62-47 home win (Feb. 6, 2019) | First Meeting: 126-73 home loss (Feb. 22, 1986)BROADCAST INFORMATIONACC Network • Play-by-Play: Wes Durham • Color: Malcolm Huckaby | WatchESPNWQAM 560 AM • Joe Zagacki | WQAM.Radio.com"
Notre Dame enters the game against Miami on Sunday night with a 7-8 conference record, tied for fifth in the ACC with Syracuse, Clemson and Georgia Tech. Miami defeated Clemson in their only meeting this season and has the Orange and Yellow Jackets remaining on the schedule. Miami can continue to climb the ACC ladder.
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The Hurricanes are a game and a half behind the aforementioned quartet, albeit with another two teams in between them. Pittsburgh is also 6-10 in the ACC. Miami split two games with the Panthers this season with each team winning at home. It’s going to be a fun last couple of weeks to the basketball season.