Miami vs Drake: Matchups to Watch, Norchad Omier's Injury, and Anthony Walker
Article photo of Drake's Roman Penn vs. Bradley's Rienk Mast; photo credit Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
In the NCAA Tournament’s first round on Friday night at 7:25 on TBS, of course the injury to Miami forward Norchad Omier has been on the minds of all Canes fans and gamblers watching the point spread.
While his presence will be important – and discussed in more detail further down in this article – there are multiple Drake players Miami must contend with when the Canes play defense.
How the Canes defend Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year Tucker DeVries will undoubtedly be priority No. 1. That stated, he’s not the only Bulldogs player that can torch the nets.
The second leading scorer for Drake has been point guard Roman Penn. The 6-foot and 185-pound senior has certainly had his moments this season, as he averaged 12.6 points per game.
As an example, Mississippi State lost to Drake 58-52 earlier this year. That was probably the toughest opponent that Drake faced, and Penn came up big by going 7 of 12 from the floor, 4 for 4 from the free throw line, to score 19 points. He also chipped in 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.
That’s about as clutch an all-around performance as Drake could have asked for. Plus, it was a game where Penn needed to score.
DeVries did not have his usual good shooting contest. He went just 5 of 15 from the floor and 3 of 10 from behind the arc, to get to 15 total points. Not efficient enough to beat Mississippi State without the help of Penn.
So, how will Miami defend Penn? Will the Canes just play him straight up with point guard Nijel Pack, including switching on ball screens like they normally do?
Miami has such an athletic starting lineup that it’s possible that’s the route it goes. Then again, there are some unique circumstances to consider.
NCAA TOURNAMENT: Matchups, Game Times, & Where to Watch
That leads back to the injury front for the Hurricanes. One of the reasons that Jim Larranaga has a unit that switches so much would be big man Norchad Omier. He’s athletic enough to play against guards near or above the 3-point line.
What about his ankle, however?
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🏈 How much has #CanesFootball upgraded their OL?
🏈 What could the starting 5 OL look like? Zion’s health is the key
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🏀 How severe is Norchad Omier’s ankle sprain?https://t.co/5yujQ8hVoe
After he was injured versus Duke on Friday evening, it’s impossible to project just how healthy Omier will be even if he starts.
Hint: do believe one iota of information about Omier's health found any form of social media, any so-called source.
It's not like Larranaga and his staff would benefit from handing out that information. Plus, unlike the NFL where coaches are required to give out injury news, college basketball programs do not have to disclose information about injuries publicly.
A couple of things could happen with how Miami plays defense, depending on Omier's ankle injury.
If Omier is out of the lineup, it could cause Larranaga and his staff to adjust how it defends Penn – as well as quite frankly all the Drake perimeter players – during ball screens.
With a crafty veteran like Penn, and Omier out of the lineup (or just limited due to his ankle injury), that means reserve big man Anthony Walker will get more minutes for the Hurricanes.
Long and athletic, that defined Walker’s skills quite well when he was in the lineup this season. He’s capable of helping on those ball screens with Penn, and adjusting shots in the lane.
How consistent would Walker be, however? That’s the great unknown.
Drake could run some plays where Walker has to come out beyond the 3-point arc over and over. That could cause issues for Miami, or perhaps not.
Again, it's the great unknown.
It’s also why the NCAA Tournament has been famous for players stepping up and making the most of an opportunity. Walker just may get that chance on Friday night.
How Miami handles defensive looks against Drake's offense, as well as Omier's health leading to the amount of time Walker plays, could determine the winner of this game.
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Fan Nation High school football recruiting analyst covering the state of Florida, as well as across the Southeastern United States and the state of Texas.