Free Throws, Poor 2nd Half Plague Canes In Loss to No. 9 BYU

It wasn’t meant to be for Jai Lucas and the Hurricanes. In their second game against top competition, Miami once again failed to pull off an upset, which would be an attention-grabber for the selection committee come March.

Along with their loss to BYU, UM also faced the defending national champion Florida Gators and tasted defeat back on November 16. The program is still looking for its first victory over a ranked non-conference opponent since 2017.

A horrid second half, along with consistent problems at the free-throw line, doomed the team in their opener at the ESPN Events Invitational in Central Florida. In the first half, the Canes led the ranked Cougars by four and held dynamic freshman AJ Dybantsa to just four points.

However, this team’s bigger issues came to light in the final 10 minutes. Miami had two different scoring droughts, one lasting over six minutes. Shooting and connecting from the outside are strengths not associated with Miami. UM shot 38 percent from the field and 23 percent from beyond the arc.

Four of the five starters didn’t hit a 3-ball, and Tru Washington went 0-for-4 from downtown. However, that might not have been the worst aspect of their performance. Once again, Miami struggled mightily at the charity stripe, shooting 41 percent.

Meanwhile, BYU took over in the second half, outscoring Miami 43-29. Dybantsa got comfortable and found his groove, ending the night with 16 points and eight rebounds. Along with him, Kennard Davis Jr. and Robert Wright III had big scoring nights as well. They combined for 35 points, and Davis shot 70 percent from the floor and made four 3-pointers.

The lack of shooting on the Hurricanes is an issue that can damage their aspirations for a March Madness trip. This team loves to run its offense through its bigs, especially Malik Reneau. The Indiana transfer did what he could, scoring 14 points on 7-for-16 shooting, as well as grabbing nine boards.

However, teams will adjust and guard him more heavily, which is exactly what happened tonight. If the support isn’t there, Miami’s chances of winning games will deplete. Jai Lucas only used four of his bench players. Salih Altuntas and Timotej Malovec only saw the floor for a combined 10 minutes.

Dante Allen saw the most time off the bench, logging 23 minutes. He posted a stat line of seven points, two rebounds, two assists, and a steal. Marcus Allen also scored four points in 12 minutes. It felt as if the Cougars outhustled Miami as well, and BYU won the rebounding battle.

While the Hurricanes took care of the ball well, only committing 10 turnovers, they gave up 15 points off of them. Georgetown also had the supreme effort of senior African forward Keba Keita. While his offensive upside is limited, Keita can impact a game with his great shot-blocking skills, and he put those on display, rejecting seven Miami attempts.

With the loss, UM has dropped to 5-2 on the season. They still have one game to play in Orlando before heading back home to Coral Gables. Tomorrow night, the Canes will play Georgetown in the consolation game of the ESPN Events Invitational.

The Hoyas from the Big East dropped their semifinal matchup to Dayton in overtime despite heroics from guard Malik Mack. It is their first loss of the season. Tomorrow night’s game will be played at 7:00 P.M. on ESPN2. It will be UM’s third crack at earning a win over a power conference opponent.