Regular-Season Champion Miami Hurricanes Turn Attention to March Madness

The No. 14 Miami Hurricanes (24-6, 15-5 ACC) are coming off an ACC regular title, sharing the accomplishment with the Virginia Cavaliers.

It is only Miami’s second time winning the ACC regular season with the previous time coming in the 2012-13 season. The Canes also have the #1 seed in the ACC tournament which will be played from March 7-11 in the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C.

Miami will play the winner of Wake Forest and Syracuse, who are playing on March 8th. Miami is 2-0 against these teams with a win against each.

In a turbulent ACC, Miami can easily earn a very high seed with a tournament championship. As of right now, ESPN analyst Joe Lunardi has the Hurricanes as a 5-seed with just their regular season resume.

So, multiple wins in the ACC tournament would really help. A tournament title would really throw Miami in the conversation of a 2 or 3 seed. It would be their second tournament title as they also won it in 2013.

The key to success in the postseason for Miami is the elite guard package they have. Arguably the best in the country, Isaiah Wong and Jordan Miller have been quietly the best tandem in the ACC in a conference with a lot of good guards. Wong and Miller average 15.9 and 15.1 points a game, respectively.

Miller is a top-ten shooter in the conference (6th). He has a field goal percentage of 54%. He also is top-ten in the conference in steals, averaging 1.3 a game.

The Hurricanes’ force down low is Norchad Omier. He is one of the best rebounders in the country. He leads Miami and is top-five in both offensive and defensive rebounding in the ACC averaging 10 a game. Along with 14 points a game, he has nine double-doubles this season.

Omier is very good defensively, too, averaging 1.3 blocks a game. He also leads the team in this category and is top five in the ACC.

If Jim Larrañaga’s team comes together and stays healthy in March, the country will be on lookout. Believe it or not, the Canes are capable of beating any program in the country. With team chemistry and a talented roster, the Hurricanes can fly through the March Madness bracket. We shall see what happens.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *