Miami Uses Second Half Surge to Snap CofC Win Streak

Final Score: Miami 85, College of Charleston 63
Top Performers:
Canyon Barry 20 pts (8-20 FG), 3 stls
Ja'Quan Newton 20 pts (6-8 FG), 7 rebs, 4 stls

For about 25-28 minutes on Saturday, the young Charleston Cougars held their own with the ultra-experienced and nationally ranked Miami Hurricanes down in Coral Gables. Canyon Barry displayed the full repertoire of offensive moves in his arsenal (after being held scoreless in this matchup last year), Jarrell Brantley and James Bourne kept CofC competitive in the paint and the Cougar team defense stifled and frustrated one of the best shooting teams in the country.

Unfortunately, against a team of this caliber in their own arena, the Cougars needed to put together 38-40 minutes of near perfect basketball. After cutting the lead to one basket early in the second half, Jim Larranaga used a media timeout to wake his senior-laden team up. The Canes pinned their ears back in what the Miami head coach called "a tremendous defensive effort" and the home team capitalized. The Cougars were clearly rattled by the overall length and speed of the Canes - and it was most clear after that timeout.

When it rains this time of year in South Florida, it pours; and that's what happened in BankUnited Center. Miami turned turnovers into points over that stretch to extend their lead out of striking distance. Although both teams had 17 giveaways, the Canes had a 10 point advantage in capitalizing on such errors.

The ACC Network showed Coach Larranaga going over the two major keys to victory with his team before the game and it was a very solid scouting report: get out in transition before the stout CofC half court defense can get set, and get the CofC underclassmen in foul trouble by having them bite on shot fakes.

Miami accomplished both those goals for much of the second half. They dictated the pace, and CofC attempted too many ill-advised shots and passes. Four Cougars struggled with foul trouble, and fatigue eventually got to Barry and the CofC defense.

The loss is a wakeup call for Charleston, but hardly one that they should hang their heads over. Jarrell Brantley had his first collegiate double-double and looked like he belonged. Pointer had another very solid outing. Barry was as good as advertised and so was the team's defense. In a game where Charleston could not get shots to fall, and they were facing a defensively-committed Top-15 squad, Grant's team still put up 63 points.

The theme of the season was always about learning and getting better every day. The Cougs will play Campbell (who smoked Citadel in Charleston today) on Tuesday and will need to clean up the mental mistakes. Those are expected from a young team, but the potential for this developing CofC team is still clearly evident.

Some more notes:

• Cam Johnson had the unfortunate task of guarding Miami's best all-around player, guard Sheldon McClellan and the CofC sophomore really struggled. Cam was 0-4 from the floor for his first scoreless game, and committed 3 fouls and 4 turnovers. The team really needed a secondary scorer tonight, and Cam needs to find a way to generate offense outside of jumpers.
• James Bourne had a great stretch in the first half where he found himself wide open off the roll and was able to finish. He had 8 points in just 15 minutes.
• Miami held a 39-21 advantage in bench points. That team is capable of deploying really good players off the pine and they jumped on a tired CofC lineup.
• Larranaga mentioned after the game that Jarrell Brantley "could play in the ACC" - I'm glad he's in the CAA
• The Cougars had just one made three pointer in the second half (six attempts)