Will Miami's Basketball Schedule Prove To Be Too Much?

With the release of Miami's ACC schedule, the Hurricanes have 30 games scheduled for the upcoming season so far. By the time the season concludes, Miami will have faced some of the best programs in the country with Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke and potentially Kansas State given how the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship plays out.

While Miami has been one of the fastest rising programs in the nation over the last two years with March Madness success and now a Top 5 class for the 2024 recruiting cycle, how they are able to tackle this schedule will tell a lot about the program Jim Larrañaga has built.

Looking ahead towards the schedule, here are some of the stretches and matchups that Miami needs to be on the lookout for:

November 28th at Kentucky

Miami's premier non-conference opponent has been a familiar name to anyone who follows college basketball. Easily their toughest non-conference matchup since Alabama in 2021, the Hurricanes will head to Rupp Arena on primetime ESPN to face the Wildcats. While the Wildcats did lose former Naismith Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe to the pros, Kentucky brought in four five-star freshmen in Justin Edwards, Cody Williams, DJ Wagner and Rob Dillingham.

While rankings don't mean everything, there's been no shortage of talent on this roster. A Miami win at Rupp Arena should easily put the Hurricanes into the AP Top 10 at that point in the season, and would be a statement win in program history.

The Month of February

When it comes to ACC play, Miami will be tested the most during the month of February. They'll face UNC twice, Duke, Virginia and Clemson. The end of the month will be the second matchup against UNC, which will be a 7:00 PM tipoff on ESPN. While Miami is 2-3 against Duke the last two seasons, Jon Scheyer's Blue Devils are now far better than last season with returning stars and high profile recruits joining. UNC will also return Armando Bacot and RJ Davis, as Bacot will enter the season with high odds to win the Naismith Player of the Year. Especially being at the end of the season, February will be the determining factor to what seed the Hurricanes will end up with.

"I think he's one of the most talented big guys we got in college basketball." @MisterCBooz on what Armando Bacot's return means for @UNC_Basketball 🐏 pic.twitter.com/Kp8XzwN5v8
— ACC Network (@accnetwork) September 27, 2023

January 20th at Syracuse

The Hurricanes will have to go into freezing temperatures in New York in January to face the Syracuse Orange, now in the post-Jim Boeheim era. Regardless, they'll be led by one of the top guards in the ACC in Judah Mintz, as the former top recruit returned after a promising freshman season averaging 16.3 points per game. "The Dome" is one of the most unique venues in sports, and this needs to be a game the Hurricanes don't lose focus on.

Syracuse's Judah Mintz working on his pick and roll game at Nike Academy. The sophomore guard showed improved shot-making prowess this week and at CP3 elite camp. pic.twitter.com/WdMgJI7gHa
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) August 11, 2023

It all boils down to the fact that the Hurricanes have reached the point where all the teams they play are circling their matchup with Miami. No matter the level of the team, everyone is going to try their best to make some noise against the Hurricanes.

While the three situations above are ones to watch out for, college basketball has shown it can be anyone on any given night. The Canes will be tested throughout the year, and it's how the respond that determines if this team can do it again.

Miami Hurricanes 2023-24 Basketball Schedule

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