At the end of the regular season, Miami is No. 32 in NET with a 5-5 Quad 1 record, a 6-2 Quad 2 record, a 3-0 Quad 3 record and a 10-0 Quad 4 record.
Miami's two Quad 2 losses came by a combined three points, and three of their five Quad 1 losses came by one possession.
Quad 1 games are home games against NET teams 1-30, neutral games against 1-50 and road games against 1-75. Quad 2 games are home against 31-75, neutral against 51-100 and road against 76-135
Miami's Quad 1 outcomes
- Nov. 16: Lost to Florida, 82-68, on a neutral floor.
- Nov. 27: Lost to BYU, 72-62, on a neutral floor.
- Jan. 7: Beat Wake Forest, 81-77, on the road.
- Jan. 17: Beat Clemson, 69-59, on the road.
- Feb. 10: Beat North Carolina, 75-66, at home.
- Feb. 14: Beat NC State, 77-76, on the road.
- Feb. 21: Lost at Virginia, 86-83.
- Feb. 24: Beat Florida State, 83-73, on the road.
- March 4: Beat SMU, 77-69, on the road.
- March 7: Lost to Louisville, 92-89, at home.
Miami's Quad 2 outcomes
- Nov. 28: Beat Georgetown, 78-65, on a neutral floor.
- Dec. 2: Beat Ole Miss, 75-66, on the road.
- Jan. 13: Beat Notre Dame, 81-69, on the road.
- Jan. 20: Lost to Florida State, 65-63, at home.
- Jan. 24: Beat Syracuse, 85-76, on the road.
- Jan. 28: Beat Stanford, 79-70, at home.
- Jan. 31: Lost to California, 86-85, at home.
- Feb. 17: Beat Virginia Tech, 67-66, at home.
Entering the ACC tournament, Miami is 11-7 combined in Quad 1 and Quad 2 games, which is a big reason the Hurricanes sit at No. 32 in NET and look far more like a comfortable NCAA tournament team than a bubble team. They also have not given away anything at the bottom of the resume, going 13-0 in Quad 3 and Quad 4.
The best thing Miami has done is prove it can win away from home against tournament-level teams. But, there is also a pretty clear pattern for the Hurricanes.
Miami has been better against good teams on the road than it has been at home. The Hurricanes own marquee home wins over North Carolina, Stanford and Virginia Tech, but three of their four home games against Quad 1 or Quad 2 competition turned into losses, including the recent Louisville defeat and the one-point and two-point losses to California and Florida State.
Miami also went 0-2 in Quad 1 non-conference games against Florida and BYU, and it does not have the kind of elite top-10 win that can completely change seeding. But, an 11-7 mark against the top two quadrants, no bad losses, and a steady stream of road wins against good teams is a complete 180 from where the program was last year.
What's there to be happy about? Job's not finished.
Lucas has turned Miami into a team that deserves respect. But the ACC tournament is where the turnaround can become something more.
Miami opens Thursday at 2:30 p.m. against the winner of Wednesday's Louisville-SMU-Syracuse path. Louisville is No. 13 in the NET and SMU is No. 38, so either one would count as a neutral-floor Quad 1 opportunity. Syracuse, by contrast, sits at No. 85, so that would be a Quad 2 game.
Miami just lost 92-89 to Louisville on Saturday, so a rematch would give the Hurricanes a quick chance to erase a loss with a better result on a neutral floor. An SMU matchup would carry value, too, because Miami already owns a 77-69 road win over the Mustangs from March 4. Beating either one would push Miami from 5-5 to 6-5 in Quad 1, and that looks better when the committee starts comparing teams in that crowded 6-to-8 seed range.
And if Miami gets through Thursday, the upside gets even better. The Friday semifinal on Miami's side of the bracket would come against Virginia or NC State if the seeds hold. Virginia is No. 14 in the NET and NC State is No. 35, so both would also be neutral-floor Quad 1 games.
If Miami gets all the way to Saturday, a title-game matchup with Duke, North Carolina or Clemson could give the Hurricanes a massive boost that would put the college basketball world on notice. Duke is No. 1 in NET, North Carolina is No. 23 and Clemson is No. 36.
Miami fans can be happy with how far the program has come in year one under Lucas, but the job isn't finished, and this team has the ability to accomplish more than the 24 wins accumulated in the regular season.