After the Miami Hurricanes' victory over the UL Monroe Warhawks, Jai Lucas expressed his frustrations with the team.
The Miami Hurricanes men's basketball team is setting a new standard with Jai Lucas and a completely reshaped roster. They're currently riding a four-game winning streak, a 9-2 record, already surpassing last year's horrendous seven-win total. The team is coming off a dominant victory over the UL Monroe Warhawks on Saturday afternoon, with a final score of 104-79.
The three players Lucas heavily recruited to establish this new culture, Tre Donaldson, Malik Reneau, and Ernest Udeh Jr., all had double-doubles. That's the first time it's happened within program history since Dec. 29th, 2023, against the North Florida Ospreys.
Donaldson set the tone with 18 points, including four three-pointers made, 11 assists, and six rebounds in 34 minutes. He recorded his second consecutive double-double, third of the season.
Reneau established his will offensively and on the glass, finishing with 22 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, and a steal in 25 minutes. The Miami native continues to carry the program on his shoulders.
Udeh Jr. had one of his more dominant performances of the season, recording 14 points, 15 rebounds, and a block in 24 minutes. It's his second double-double of the season.
Regardless of the victory and the numbers, Lucas wasn't satisfied with the team's performance, especially on defense.
"The result was good, but the process of getting the result was not good," he said. "We pride ourselves on being a defensive team and we were not that today. We were nonexistent on the defensive end."
The Warhawks finished with 15 three-pointers made out of 32 attempts for the game, 46.9 percent. They had four players make three shots or more from behind the arc. However, the Hurricanes had power in the paint, outscoring them 66-22 for the game. The players understood that Lucas's expectations weren't met.
"He expects more from us," Udeh Jr. said. "Obviously, whenever he feels like we're not playing to the level, playing to the standard that we could be playing at, he lets us know. He's brutally honest; you have to love that in a coach, to tell you, even though you're going 99 percent, it's not good enough."
It's great for a program that is starting from scratch to have a leader such as Lucas at the helm. A head coach who demands excellence from all players is similar to the Miami Heat's Erik Spoelstra.
The Hurricanes have an opportunity to be dark-horse contenders, not only in the ACC, but in the nation. However, the work cannot be skipped. They will host the FIU Panthers on Tuesday night and Lucas expects it to be a "war" in the matchup.
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