Jordan Miller was perfect on Sunday.
The Hurricanes’ fifth-year senior guard made all seven of his shots from the field and all 13 of his free throws, scoring 27 points in Miami’s comeback Elite Eight victory over Texas.
Miller is the first player to take at least seven shots from the field and free-throw line and hit all of them in an NCAA Tournament game in more than 30 years. The last player to accomplish the feat was Duke’s Christian Laettner in the 1992 Elite Eight. In that game, Laettner hit “The Shot” — a last-second, game-winning basket that sent Duke to the Final Four.
Miller did not have a last-second heave on Sunday, but his efforts were equally important.
“I’ve said it all season long: He’s the most underrated player in the country because he’s good at everything,” Miami coach Jim Larrañaga said after the Hurricanes’ first-ever win in the Elite Eight. “In the summertime, he had a 7:1 assist-to-turnover ratio in practices. Seven to one. That’s ridiculous. That’s better than any point guard I know. He can rebound. He defends all different-sized guys. [On Sunday] he was switching ball screens at the end and keeping the guy in front of him.
“Last week he guarded Indiana’s center Trayce Jackson-Davis, did a fantastic job on him. He can shoot the three. He’s great at driving. Straight line drive, dribble drives. He makes all of his free throws. He is a great, great player. Simple.”
Although Miller was the star in what is — for now — the biggest win in Hurricanes history, he is not alone in providing crucial contributions. Miami’s whole lineup has stepped up in postseason play. In four NCAA Tournament games, the Hurricanes have had three different players lead them in points. In their win over second-seeded Texas, all five Hurricanes starters had double-digit points.
“Between Nijel [Pack], Wooga [Poplar], and (Isaiah Wong), we’ve got a tremendous backcourt,” Larrañaga said. “And you look at our four/five position with Jordan, who’s exceptional, and we’ve got the best rebounder in the country with Norchad [Omier].”
The fifth-seeded Hurricanes (29-7) needed the entire team on Sunday. They found themselves trailing the Longhorns by as much as 13 points. Miami’s deficit was still 10 points with 8:55 left in the second half. But the situation was not too big for the ‘Canes.
Miami has had more than its share of tight games. UM notched close victories against Clemson, Duke, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest during the regular season. UM also dropped close games to Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, N.C. State and Pittsburgh.
So when crunch time came on Sunday and the Hurricanes needed to fight back to keep their season alive, they were prepared.
“I would just say I thank the ACC for preparing us for these types of games,” said Wong, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half. “Just coming in, every game we played in the ACC is always a close game. It’s always a shot to win. I feel like coming into March we’d been in those types of situations, and we played good.
“We weren’t afraid or scared of any situation. We just stuck together and played together throughout the game.”
In addition to Miller’s 27 points and Wong’s 14, Pack scored 15 points. The Kansas State transfer, playing in his first NCAA Tournament, has scored at least 12 points in all four tournament games, leading UM in scoring twice. Omier, who transferred from Arkansas State and began the tournament with an ankle injury, is averaging 10.5 points and 13.2 rebounds in the tournament.
Poplar has also grown into a major contributor, scoring double-digits in three of the last four games while providing strong defense.
“His trajectory is so high right now, I can tell you,” Larrañaga said. “His defense on [Texas guard Sir’Jabari] Rice was, I’d say at the highest level I’ve seen in college basketball because Rice can really score. He’s got a fantastic shot fake, and normally everybody jumps for it. Wooga wouldn’t let him catch it. He fought over every screen. He boxed him out. He got some rebounds.”
Miami will need its entire team to keep firing on all cylinders if the Hurricanes want to keep making history and play for the first national title in program history. UM faces No. 4 seed UConn (29-8) in the national semifinal on Saturday night (8:49 p.m., CBS).
The Huskies have been the most dominant team in the tournament, beating all four of their opponents by 15 points or more. Sophomore forward Adama Sanogo, who is averaging 20 points and 9.7 rebounds per game in the tournament, leads a Huskies squad that routed Gonzaga 82-54 in the Elite Eight on Saturday.
Miami enters the game as a 5 1/2-point underdog, but the Hurricanes have been counted out throughout the tournament.
“I’m loving the experience so far,” Pack said, “but we’ve still got more work to do.”
