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Three Key Takeaways:

Miami’s Sheldon McClellan finishes a dunk in the first half. (Credit: Charles Krupa/AP)

1. Buffalo’s Lamonte Bearden should walk away with his head held high. On Wednesday, Bearden talked briefly about his struggles and the disappointment of last year’s NCAA Tournament loss to West Virginia. He tallied just eight points and committed seven turnovers a year ago, but today he delivered a mature performance in defeat, scoring 19 points along with only four turnovers. Bearden is only a sophomore and the Bulls should return four starters from this year’s team, so don’t be surprised if you hear his name again at future NCAA Tournaments down the line.
2. Miami’s length is a great defensive asset. The Hurricanes rank 25th in the country in effective height (a statistic that measures a team’s size per minute played), which makes them one of the longest rotations on the country. That length can be really effective on the defensive end, as shown by Miami holding the Bulls to 39.4 percent shooting from two-point range (with Kamari Murphy registering four blocks). If they stay engaged, Miami is a very effective defensive team.
3. A consistent Angel Rodriguez is key to Miami’s success. At his best, Miami’s point guard is a darting slasher who operates the pick-and-roll with precise passing and creative finishes at the rim. At his worst, Rodriguez is an inefficient scorer who turns the ball over too often. He showed flashes of both against Buffalo this evening, finishing with 24 points (many on late free throws) on 6-of-15 shooting and three turnovers. For Miami to make a run to subsequent weekends, it will need Rodriguez at his best to facilitate one of the country’s top offenses. If he’s not, the Hurricanes might have to take their talents back to South Beach a bit earlier than they’d hoped.

Star Of The Game: Sheldon McClellan. Miami’s leading scorer delivered big once again, scoring 20 points to lead the ‘Canes to victory. While McClellan didn’t make any outside shots in this game, he showed off an impressive slashing game that has helped him climb up NBA Draft boards.

Quotables:

• “A lot of our kids proved they belong on a big stage like this.” — Buffalo head coach Nate Oats, on his team’s overall performance.
• “In the back of our heads, we do know we have a lot of young players and in the next couple of years we’re going to continue to be strong.” — The Bulls’ C.J. Massinburg, on their future.

Sights And Sounds: Perhaps it was all of the energy that the Dunkin’ Donuts Center crowd invested in Yale’s upset of Baylor or maybe they were just saving it for Arizona-Wichita State, but this contest was by far the quietest game of the day. While the pockets of Buffalo and Miami fans could be heard at times (especially late), there was little chanting and very little involvement from those not invested in either team. We’ll see if Hurricanes’ faithful get a little louder on Saturday.

What’s Next: Miami moves on to face the winner of tonight’s game between Arizona and Wichita State. Either opponent will be a big step up in competition and talent level for the ‘Canes.

Chris Stone (136 Posts)

Chris Stone is a contributor to the Big 12 microsite. You can find him on Twitter @cstonehoops.

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 17th, 2016 at 7:48 pm by Chris Stone and is filed under 2016 ncaa tournament, rushed reactions. Tagged: angel rodriguez, buffalo, kamari murphy, lamonte bearden, miami, nate oats, Sheldon McClellan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.