Miami Hurricanes
2019-2020 Overall Rank: #57
Conference Rank: #8 ACC
Miami didn’t make an appearance in the NCAA Tournament last season for the first time since 2015. Their 14 wins were the lowest for the school since the 2006-07 season. The Hurricanes have become a consistently competitive team under Jim Larranaga, and they should be able to bounce back this season. Just two starters return, but Miami added two impact transfers along with a solid recruiting class to help them get back to relevance in the ACC.
2018-19 Record: 14-18, 5-13
2018-19 Postseason: None
Coach: Jim Larranaga
Coach Record: 175-97 at Miami, 645-431 overall
Key Departed Players:
Anthony Lawrence, Forward, 12.6 ppg
Zach Johnson, Guard, 11.8 ppg
Ebuka Izundu, Center, 10.9 ppg
Anthony Mack, Forward, 2.6 ppg
Anthony Lawrence, Forward, 12.6 ppg
Zach Johnson, Guard, 11.8 ppg
Ebuka Izundu, Center, 10.9 ppg
Anthony Mack, Forward, 2.6 ppg
Key Returning Players:
Chris Lykes, Junior, Guard, 16.2 ppg
Dejan Vasiljevic, Senior, Guard, 11.8 ppg
Sam Waardenburg, Junior, Forward, 5.3 ppg
Deng Gak, Sophomore, Forward, 2.5 ppg
Willie Herenton, Junior, Guard, 0.9 ppg
Rodney Miller, Junior, Center, DNP last season
Chris Lykes, Junior, Guard, 16.2 ppg
Dejan Vasiljevic, Senior, Guard, 11.8 ppg
Sam Waardenburg, Junior, Forward, 5.3 ppg
Deng Gak, Sophomore, Forward, 2.5 ppg
Willie Herenton, Junior, Guard, 0.9 ppg
Rodney Miller, Junior, Center, DNP last season
Key New Players:
Harlond Beverly, Freshman, Guard
Harlond Beverly, Freshman, Guard
Kameron McGusty, Junior, Guard, Transfer from Oklahoma
Keith Stone, Senior, Forward, Transfer from Florida
Keith Stone, Senior, Forward, Transfer from Florida
Anthony Walker, Freshman, Forward
Isaiah Wong, Freshman, Guard
Isaiah Wong, Freshman, Guard
Projection:
The Hurricanes return just two full-time starters from a year ago. Junior Chris Lykes has become the face of the program after finishing ninth in the ACC in scoring as a sophomore. He averaged 16.2 points, 3.2 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals last season. Lykes stands just 5-foot-7, but he is one of the most dangerous scorers in the ACC. The other returning starter is senior Dejan Vasiljevic who is mostly known as a sharpshooter. Last year, Vasiljevic made 36.7% of his threes on 6.9 attempts per game. Vasiljevic was sixth in the ACC in threes made and ranks eighth in career threes made at Miami. Sam Waardenburg made 11 starts as a sophomore. He averaged 5.3 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists on the season. Deng Gak should be back healthy after playing in just eight games as a freshman. Gak was averaging 2.5 points and 4.1 rebounds in 14.6 minutes per game before a knee injury ended his season. Rodney Miller is also back after redshirting last year. Miller played limited minutes his first two seasons and should be ready to take on a bigger role as a junior. Kameron McGusty and Keith Stone are experienced transfers from major colleges who should make immediate impacts this season. McGusty spent his first two collegiate seasons at Oklahoma where he made 25 starts. McGusty averaged 10.9 points as a freshman, but that number dropped to 8.0 per game as a sophomore. He was a member of the Big 12 All-Freshman team and Miami will look to get that level of play out of McGusty this season. Keith Stone is a grad transfer from Florida who made 39 starts across three seasons with the Gators. Stone was averaging 6.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in 17 games last year before an ACL injury ended his season. Stone stands 6-foot-8 and can stretch the floor as he made 39.4% of his threes in his Florida career. Miami also welcomes in a good recruiting class led by four-star prospects Harlond Beverly and Isaiah Wong. Beverly and Wong are both guards who were ranked in the top-100 of their class and should see ample playing time as freshmen. Rounding out the roster is three-star recruit Anthony Walker and former walk-on Willie Herenton. Miami had a down year in 2018-19, but the Hurricanes should be back to being competitive in the ACC this year.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NIT
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 71.8 (196th in nation, 7th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 71.1 (170, 11)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.5 (226, 9)
Field-Goal Defense: 45.1 (254, 14)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.4 (104, 5)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 33.3 (232, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 73.5 (82, 7)
Rebound Margin: -3.0 (298, 15)
Assists Per Game: 12.9 (215, 8)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.7 (64, 4)
Madness 2019 Men’s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#46 Harlond Beverly
#73 Isaiah Wong
