The Miami Hurricanes fell short against a tough task, facing the Florida Gators, understanding that there's more room to grow.
Jacksonville, FL - Last night, the Miami Hurricanes had an opportunity to establish themselves as legitimate underdog threats in college basketball, facing the reigning champion Florida Gators. It was perfect for Jai Lucas and the team to test themselves and see how good they really are. However, it ended up being a humbling experience.
The Hurricanes were chomped by the Gators, with a final score of 82-68.
"This was a great opportunity and test for us, especially this early in the season," Lucas said. "We needed to see what the level looked like of what an Elite 8, Final Four caliber team looked like. Some lessons you can't learn until you see it. I think this is one we can see moving forward, especially having a whole new team and 12 new guys learning to play together."
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NO. 10 FLORIDA DEFEATS ANOTHER RIVAL 😤
The Gators rout Miami in Jacksonville 🐊
The matchup was held at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, over 70 miles north of Gainesville, 355 miles from Miami. However, the atmosphere in Jacksonville was electrified by Gator fans, almost as if it were home-court advantage for them.
"This was the first, I would say, this was a road environment," Lucas added. "It wasn't a neutral. This was our first time away from home."
The starting lineups:
Hurricanes: Tre Donaldson-Tru Washington-Shelton Henderson-Malik Reneau-Ernest Udeh Jr.
Gators: Xaivian Lee-Boogie Fland-Alex Condon-Thomas Haugh-Rueben Chinyelu
It was time for tipoff, junior guard Tru Washington was the first to punch the scoreboard for the Hurricanes and the game. However, the Gators were quick to impose their will, sparking a 9-0 run.
It started getting intense, with tons of back-and-forth sequences.
Hurricanes freshman forward Shelton Henderson attempted the team's first four free throws, only making one, which would later define the rest of the game.
They struggled from behind the arc; meanwhile, Gators' junior forward Alex Condon made one from the right wing, which became the biggest turning point of the game.
The Hurricanes had moments when they generated some offense, attempting to regain control of the game, but the defense had no answer for the Gators' lengthy frontcourt in the paint.
The reigning champions sparked an 18-5 run in the second half, led by as many as 19 points, and dominated until the final buzzer.
Junior center Rueben Chinyelu showed strength against the Hurricanes' frontcourt, finishing with 16 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks, and an assist in 26 minutes. Also, Condon led the Gators with 19 points, seven rebounds, a block, and an assist in 22 minutes. Despite both of them fouling out of the game late in the second half, it made no difference; the damage was already done.
Junior forward Thomas Haugh followed up with 17 points, including three three-pointers, eight rebounds, three assists, and a block in 36 minutes. He had a moment in the second half, finishing a layup, plus a foul committed by Hurricanes center Ernest Udeh Jr., electrifying the Gator fans who dominated the arena attendance.
Once they got rolling, there was no looking back.
The Hurricanes finished with three players scoring in double figures.
Senior forward Malik Reneau finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and a block in 27 minutes. However, he made eight shots out of 23 attempts from the field, a sign of struggle against the Gators' tall defense. Nothing came easy for the 22-year-old.
"We never had this experience before," Reneau said. "A lot of our guys on the team, it's a new team. We've got to be more connected going down the stretch. This game is going to provide a lot, just knowing that they won a national championship last year and the fight they gave. Next time, we got to get back and play 40 minutes instead of 25, 30 minutes. We got to play a whole 40."
Senior guard Tre Donaldson recorded 11 points, four rebounds, six assists, two steals, and two blocks in 36 minutes. He attempted to spark energy for the Hurricanes, even slightly taunting Gator fans in the stands, but it wasn't enough to get them going without stopping.
Washington had some strong plays, finishing with 16 points, three rebounds, two steals, and an assist in 35 minutes, but not enough offense to keep up with the Gators' dominance in the paint.
It's worth noting that the Hurricanes fell against their own defensive standards, scoring less than 70 total points and making fewer than six three-pointers, with only five out of 18 attempts.
Another struggle came from the free-throw line, where they made only 15 out of 27 attempts.
The Hurricanes can be a great team and compete in the ACC, but there's still more ladder to climb in order to reach full form. They will return home to face the Elon Phoenix on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
"What I tell my team, 'I think we're really good,'" Lucas said. "I think we have a chance to be really good. I got to get them to play with that confidence and play with that kind of edge the whole time. I thought this lesson will help them with that. I think a big part of it is we just got to be consistent in what we do and can't get away from it. We can't let the moments let us get away from who we are."
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