Miami basketball collapses in second half, losing at Clemson

The Miami basketball team was outscored 29-6 after taking a 54-48 lead with 9:50 left in the game in a 77-60 loss at Clemson on Wednesday night. Clemson and Miami were tied at 57 with 6:09 remaining. Clemson closed the game on a 20-3 run as part of the bigger 29-6 run for the decisive win.

Norchad Omier led Miami with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Chase Hunter led Clemson with 20 points, Joe Girard had 18 and P.J. Hall 13 for the Tigers. Kyshawn George scored 13 and Wooga Poplar 11 for Miami. Nijel Pack was scoreless, missing all seven of his shots from the floor and his four three-point attempts.

Miami played well for the first 30 minutes in a game of runs. The final Clemson run decided the game. Clemson scored the final 12 points to turn the game into a blowout. George and Omier were the dominant offensive players for Miami in the second half. Omier scored 16 in the second half and George had eight.

Hunter scored 12, Hall 10 and Girard eight in the second half. As they have too often this season, Miami went cold for long stretches. Equally as troubling was the defense by Miami in the second half. Clemson shot 35.7 percent in the first half and 53.6 percent in the second half.

Bensley Joseph scored nine points in 25 minutes off the bench. Michael Nwoko played five minutes and Jakai Robinson two, as Jim Larranaga continues to primarily utilize a six-man rotation. Other than the final five to 10 minutes, the free throw line played a huge role in the outcome on Wednesday.

Clemson made 14 of its 17 free throw attempts. Miami was 4-5 from the line. Miami has been at its best this season when they get to the free-throw line. The Hurricanes will attempt to end their three-game losing streak on Saturday at Boston College. The Eagles and Hurricanes tipoff at 4:00 PM Eastern time.