No. 22 Miami Fails to Make History, Falling to Louisville in Triller
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CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Making history is never easy. No. 22 Miami saw firsthand that it would have to go through a supercharged Mikel Brownless Louisville offense to make it happen.
Miami quickly found itself with a slow and sloppy start to the game. Offensively, they have four turnovers in the first two minutes of the contest against the pesky Cardinals, quickly giving up a 10-2 lead. It was also a slow start for star scorer Malik Reneau.
Reneau quickly picked up two fouls, leaving him off the court for nearly 10 minutes in the first half while the Hurricanes struggled to find any consistent offense.
The first half also saw the Canes try to combat the Cardinals' offense with a 3-2 zone, which clearly wasn’t going to work for long. Many wide open three’s began to rain down against the Canes, and the first half ended with the Hurricanes trailing from behind while Louisville's offense was unstoppable.
However, in an emotionally charged Senior Night, the Canes were not going down without a fight. The Canes would have Noam Dovrat knock down three 3-pointers in the first half to cut the lead to four for the Canes.
The second half continued to be a showcase of what the Cardinals' offense can be when they are clicking, while the Canes would struggle to attack the paint.
The Hurricanes would only have one Cane in double figures while the rest struggled from the field. Moreover, it would be a typical Miami game; they would only struggle to stop the supercharged Cardinals offense.
The Canes would find themselves down 12, looking lifeless until they found themselves in the paint, and Malik Reneau was fouled. Reneau would continue to get fouled so much that he would get the Canes back into the game thanks to his free-throw shooting. A phrase throughout this season would come as a shocker to anyone who has paid any attention to the team's weaknesses this year.
Thanks to the efforts of Reneau and Tre Donaldson, the Caens would type the game with 4:21 77-77. It was a brand new ball game, and the Wacso Center was ready to rally behind the Canes chasing history.
Miami would rally in two more baskets, going up four, but a trend in the second half would be the constant calls that would favor both teams.
The Hurricanes would get fouled and make a shot, and it would go the other way as well. Back of the fourth, the game went with a made three from Tru Washington to give the Canes a two-point lead with less than two minutes, followed by a foul.
The Hurricanes would trade back and forth with the Cardinals until Adrian Wooley would hit the go-ahead three that would be the final dagger for the Canes. UM would fall 92-89, finishing the season tied for the best regular season in program history, 24-7, and an ACC record of 13-5.
"You know, losing sucks, but I also wanted to give them some grace as well because the main 24 games with 12 new people to finish in the top three of the ACC to get a double by with the league that's getting 8, nine, nine teams in the tournament, hopefully, is impressive," Hurricanes head coach Jai Lucas said."
The Hurricanes now turn their attention to the ACC Tournament, where they will likely face off against the Cardinals again in the quarterfinal round.
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Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University earning a Bachelor of Arts and Science in Communications with a concentration in Print and Digital Journalism. During his time in Starkville, he spent a year as an intern working for Mississippi State On SI primarily covering basketball, football, baseball, and soccer while writing, recording, and creating multimedia stories during his tenor. Since graduating, he has assumed the role of lead staff writer for Miami Hurricanes On SI covering football, basketball, baseball, and all things Hurricanes related.
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