Virginia Basketball vs. Miami Game Preview, Score Prediction
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See our game blog for Virginia vs. Miami with score updates and live analysis here: Virginia vs. Miami Live Updates | NCAA Men's Basketball
Two of the worst teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference will clash in Coral Gables on Wednesday night, when the 2-7 Virginia Cavaliers visit the winless Miami Hurricanes.
Read on for a full preview of Virginia at Miami, including game details and notes, an opponent scouting report, what to watch for, and a score prediction for Wednesday night's matchup.
Virginia vs. Miami Game Details
Who: Virginia Cavaliers (9-11, 2-7 ACC) at Miami Hurricanes (4-16, 0-9 ACC)
When: Wednesday, January 29th at 7pm ET
Where: Watsco Center (8,000) in Coral Gables, Florida
How to watch: ESPNU
How to listen: SiriusXM 119 or 193, SXM App 955 | Virginia Sports Radio Network
All-time series: Virginia leads 16-13
Last meeting: Virginia defeated Miami 60-38 on February 5th, 2024 in Charlottesville.
Virginia vs. Miami Game Notes
- Virginia leads Miami 16-13 in the all-time series that dates back to 1966.
- The Cavaliers have won seven of their last eight meetings with the Hurricanes.
- Miami is 8-4 against Virginia in Coral Gables and 7-4 against UVA at Watsco Center, but the Cavaliers have won three of the last four games at Watsco Center.
- Virginia and Miami met once last season in Charlottesville, a 60-38 victory for the Cavaliers that represented the Hurricanes' lowest scoring output since 1948.
- 14 of the last 17 meetings between Virginia and Miami have been decided by 10 points or less.
- UVA is 1-7 away from Charlottesville and 0-5 in true road games this season.
- Virginia is currently 16th in the ACC standings with a 2-7 conference record, and Miami is 18th at 0-9.
Scouting Report: Miami
2023-2024: 15-17, 6-14 ACC (14th)
2024-2025: 4-16, 0-9 ACC (18th)
Life comes at you fast. Two seasons ago, Miami shared the ACC regular season title with Virginia and reached the program's first-ever Final Four. The season before that, the Hurricanes made a run to their first Elite Eight. Now, Miami is already guaranteed to have its second-straight losing season and had its all-time winningest coach, former UVA assistant coach Jim Larrañaga, step down from his post the day after Christmas amidst a 4-8 start. The Hurricanes haven't won a game since.
Like Ron Sanchez, Bill Courtney is currently coaching his team with an interim tag. Like Jim Larrañaga, Courtney also has UVA ties, serving as an assistant at Virginia under Dave Leitao from 2006 to 2009. Obviously, Courtney has been dealt a tough hand, and while Miami enters this game on a nine-game losing streak, it's not like the Canes haven't had their fair share of close games. Miami lost to Mount St. Mary's in overtime by four points, lost to Virginia Tech on the road by one point, fell to Boston College and Wake Forest by 10 points each, and most recently lost at California by four points in overtime. These Hurricanes still have some fight in them and Wednesday night's game against Virginia might be their best chance to avoid going winless in the ACC this season.
We'll dive into the projected starting five as listed in Miami's official game notes for Wednesday's contest, but it's important to note that the Hurricanes have had 11 different players start in games this season, which is understandable given the tumultuous and unsuccessful year the team has had, but injuries have also been significant. Most recently, Courtney made the move to bring the team's leading scorer, 6'7" wing Matthew Cleveland, off the bench. Cleveland responded by scoring 30 points. Virginia fans should be familiar with his name, as the former Florida State transfer hit a buzzer-beating three to take down Virginia on Senior Day at John Paul Jones Arena in the 2021-2022 season, the nail in the coffin for UVA's NCAA Tournament hopes that season. This has been far from the season Cleveland wanted, but he is averaging a career-high 15.1 points per game and is shooting a career-best 40.0% from beyond the arc.
Miami's starting five in its last game featured a back court of 6'5" freshman guard and former McDonald's All-American Jalil Bethea (6.9 ppg), 6'4" redshirt junior guard (A.J. Staton-McCray), and 6'7" sophomore guard Paul Djobet (5.3 ppg). Starting in the front court are 6'8" senior guard Brandon Johnson (7.9 ppg, 6.9 rpg) and 6'9" senior forward Kiree Huie (2.8 ppg), an Idaho State transfer who did not play a second for the Hurricanes until January 14th at Duke.
Star point guard Nijel Pack (13.9 ppg, 4.3 apg), who transferred from Kansas State in 2022 and was a big part of Miami's run to the Final Four the next season, started the first nine games of this season, but hasn't played since then after suffering a foot injury. Courtney said he has "no idea" if or when Pack will be back on the floor. Virginia Tech transfer center Lynn Kidd (11.1 ppg, 6.9 rpg) started the first 19 games of the season before missing the last game at Cal. Courtney says Kidd is "day-to-day" with his injury this week.
Additionally, 6'3" senior guard Jalen Blackmon (7.7 ppg), 6'4" freshman guard Austin Swartz (5.8 ppg), and 6'3" freshman guard Divine Ugochukwu (5.1 ppg) have each started at least six games and average double-digit minutes per game. Basically, it's anyone's guess who will start and who will play a big factor for Miami in Wednesday night's game.
What to Watch For in Virginia vs. Miami
A motivated Miami team
For a team that has lost nine-straight and 16 of the last 17 games, the Hurricanes certainly didn't look like they'd given up when they knocked down 14 threes and took Cal to overtime on the road on Saturday night. A home game against a 9-11 Virginia team could be Miami's best chance to win a game in ACC play. Expect the Canes to come out with some life and intensity to try to get back in the win column.
Injured Cavaliers
Freshman sharpshooter Ishan Sharma missed Saturday's loss to Notre Dame with an illness; Ron Sanchez didn't know if Sharma would be available when he was asked about it on Monday. Additionally, the official UVA men's basketball social media accounts posted a picture of the team with Ralph Sampson at practice on Tuesday and Andrew Rohde was pictured with a boot on his right foot. Players have worn boots one day and played the next, but the availability statuses of both Rohde and Sharma is concerning and critical for a Virginia team that started the season severely lacking in depth of ball-handlers. We saw the impact of Sharma's absence in UVA's loss to Notre Dame Saturday and there have been many times this season that Rohde has looked like Virginia's best player.
Battle of the Bad
Virginia is 16th in the ACC at 2-7. Miami is dead last at 0-9. The Cavaliers are hoping to climb out of the cellar to avoid being one of those three unfortunate teams to miss the 15-team ACC Tournament field. The Canes are hoping to get into the win column for the first time in ACC play. This game has the vibes of Tuesday at the ACC Tournament; we might just get an entertaining game out of it.
Virginia vs. Miami Prediction
If Rohde or Sharma (or both) do not play in this game, Virginia will be in serious trouble. Even if both play, Matthew Cleveland could score 30 points and lead the Canes to a win. But as it stands, I have the Cavaliers getting back on track with a close and hard-fought win in Coral Gables, their first true road victory of the season.
Score prediction: Virginia 67, Miami 64
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