Miami vs UConn: Help Off the Canes Bench?
Article photo of (L-R) Harlond Beverly, Isaiah Wong, Anthony Walker, Jordan MIller and Nijel Pack; photo credit to David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
More production for the Canes off the bench against UConn would be great.
That notion brings up a question. Would the Canes be able to knock off the Huskies without more bench production?
Last weekend, the two games for Miami saw limited bench points. Against Houston, Miami’s reserves combined for 38 minutes of action, with forward Anthony Walker accounting for 16 of those minutes and scoring all seven of the points from the group. As a side note, Walker was also having fun in Houston:
Ant mic’d up for the gear drop didn’t disappoint 😂😂😂
— Canes Men’s Basketball (@CanesHoops) March 31, 2023
adidas blessed the squad for the Final Four!! 🙌🔥 pic.twitter.com/75vwoSPk8u
The other two players that came into the game were guards Bensley Joseph and Harlond Beverly. Joseph played 10 minutes and Beverly 12.
The starters for the Canes accounted for 82 of the 89 points, while each of the starters also played at least 31 minutes.
Against Texas, Miami’s bench rotation was much different with the Longhorns using more guards and going smaller. Walker played only four minutes and did not score. Joseph played 13 minutes, contributing 5 points, a steal and a rebound. The other two Canes that played but did not score were Beverly with eight minutes and forward A.J. Casey played three minutes. The starters did well again, however.
Miami guard Nijel Pack scored 14, guard Isaiah Wong 15, guard Wooga Poplar had 16, and guard Jordan Miller led all scorers with 27. Plus, big man Norchad Omier went for 11. That tremendous all-around performance from the starters made it less important for the reserves to contribute.
Could the Canes defeat the Huskies without more production, and more scoring in particular, from their bench?
It’s a tough question to answer because the success of the starters carried Miami past talented Houston and Texas teams. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it, as the old saying goes.
From the two combined games a week ago, only 12 points came from reserves, and the bench averaged 33 minutes from the two contests overall.
UConn has been destroying teams, however. Finding more production would certainly be helpful for Miami.
One of more of Miami’s starters could get into foul trouble as well. Whatever the case might be, Miami’s reserves might have to play, and produce more, than they did during the prior two NCAA Tournament games against Houston and Texas.
Perhaps a better way to evaluate the situation would be like this. If Miami added an additional 5 points off its bench versus UConn, while the starters continued to play very well, it could be a prime way for Miami to advance to the national title game. There will be other opportunities for the bench to help, too.
UConn has earned the No. 2 rebounding margin average in the nation. The Huskies have out rebounded their opposition by 9.4 per game this season. If nothing else, adding more rebounding from Miami’s bench would be great news for head coach Jim Larrañaga and the Hurricanes. Finally, one last point to make.
Sometimes it’s not about the raw numbers. If a player such as Beverly helps to hold down UConn guard Jordan Hawkins from reaching his 16.3 scoring average, he’s impacting the scoreboard in a different, yet important, manner. Quality defense does not go out of style.
To summarize, Miami’s starting lineup has primarily been responsible for finding different ways to win throughout the first four games of the NCAA Tournament. That does not mean the starters have to carry the load as much against the Huskies. Perhaps it will be one or more of the Hurricanes bench players that come up big.
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