Stanford follows up a disheartening loss to Cal with a tough road trip. Going 1-1 in Florida would be a good result, and the "easier" game is at FSU on Saturday. Tonight Miami is favored by 8.5 with an over/under of 147.5 - implied score is 78-69.5. Miami is 16-4, 5-2 in ACC play, 11-1 at home. Their record might be a bit misleading - their only Quad 1 win is at Wake Forest (with Quad 1 losses at Clemson and vs. Florida & BYU on neutral courts). Nine of their 16 wins are Quad 4. In ACC play, Clemson is the only team from the top half of the league that they have faced. Given that Stanford's wins over Louisville & UNC were bounce-back wins after crushing losses, there is some reason for hope tonight - but the Hurricanes will surely be a challenging opponent.
Miami thrives on a fast pace, running the floor, and playing transition offense. The Hurricanes lead the ACC in FG% (51%) and are 3rd in assists (17.7/game) largely due to transition offense. They are 3rd in the ACC in rebounding margin at +9.0/game and are heavily reliant on 2nd chance points. So this will be another challenge for Stanford's bigs - especially without Okpara. On the other hand, the Hurricanes are 17th in the ACC in 3s (7.0/game) - not surprising with the emphasis on transition/fast break offense. Maybe more encouraging, they are also 17th in opponent's 3s% (34.5%). Hopefully Ebuka, Benny, Jeremy, et al can take advantage of that. Miami has sometimes struggled at times with turnovers and against zone defenses - other things to watch for if Stanford can be competitive tonight.
Stanford beat Miami 88-51 last season at Maples. First-year coach Jai Lucas cleaned house. The roster (7 freashmen, 1 sophomore, 2 juniors, & 3 seniors includes 0(!!) players from the team we saw last year.
Lucas has tinkered a bit with the starting line-up in recent games, but most likely starters seem to be:
#5 Malik Reneau (6'9/238 Sr F) 3 seasons at Indiana, 2-time All-Big 10 HM. Leads team with 19.7ppg (#5 ACC) on 56.7 FG% shooting(#6) & 80.2% FT (#14). Gets 6.5rpg (#17 ACC). Also leads team with 52 turnovers. #35 player in NCAA (while Okorie is #32) per this ESPN article: https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basket...-2025-2026
#3 Tre Donaldson (6'3/198 Sr G) 2 seasons at Auburn, 1 as a starter at Michigan. 16.0ppg (#13 ACC), leads team with 6.4apg (#3) and assist/turnover ratio (3.0) is #2 in ACC. 32.9 minutes/game (#8 ACC).
#7 Shelton Henderson (6'6/240 Fr F) 14.4ppg (#19 ACC) on 62.2% FGs (#3).
#10 Tru Washington (6'4/204 Jr G) 2 seasons U of New Mexico, All-Mtn West HM. 11.8ppg, 1.8 steals/game (#7 ACC). Likely to guard Okarie?
#8 Ernest Udeh Jr. (6'11/266 Sr C) 2022 McDs AA. 1 season Kansas, 2 at TCU (All-big 12 HM). Leads the ACC with 10.1rpg.
Other key players:
#35 Dante Allen (6'4/220 Fr G)
#88 Timo Malovec (6'8/215 Fr F) Slovakian with 2 years in the Adriatic Basketball Association. A better version of Cameron Grant - 29/81 from 3, while just 3/8 from 2.
Stanford's 2-game losing "streak" could easily become 5. Hopefully, Kyle Smith & Co. can right the ship as they have in the past.
Miami thrives on a fast pace, running the floor, and playing transition offense. The Hurricanes lead the ACC in FG% (51%) and are 3rd in assists (17.7/game) largely due to transition offense. They are 3rd in the ACC in rebounding margin at +9.0/game and are heavily reliant on 2nd chance points. So this will be another challenge for Stanford's bigs - especially without Okpara. On the other hand, the Hurricanes are 17th in the ACC in 3s (7.0/game) - not surprising with the emphasis on transition/fast break offense. Maybe more encouraging, they are also 17th in opponent's 3s% (34.5%). Hopefully Ebuka, Benny, Jeremy, et al can take advantage of that. Miami has sometimes struggled at times with turnovers and against zone defenses - other things to watch for if Stanford can be competitive tonight.
Stanford beat Miami 88-51 last season at Maples. First-year coach Jai Lucas cleaned house. The roster (7 freashmen, 1 sophomore, 2 juniors, & 3 seniors includes 0(!!) players from the team we saw last year.
Lucas has tinkered a bit with the starting line-up in recent games, but most likely starters seem to be:
#5 Malik Reneau (6'9/238 Sr F) 3 seasons at Indiana, 2-time All-Big 10 HM. Leads team with 19.7ppg (#5 ACC) on 56.7 FG% shooting(#6) & 80.2% FT (#14). Gets 6.5rpg (#17 ACC). Also leads team with 52 turnovers. #35 player in NCAA (while Okorie is #32) per this ESPN article: https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basket...-2025-2026
#3 Tre Donaldson (6'3/198 Sr G) 2 seasons at Auburn, 1 as a starter at Michigan. 16.0ppg (#13 ACC), leads team with 6.4apg (#3) and assist/turnover ratio (3.0) is #2 in ACC. 32.9 minutes/game (#8 ACC).
#7 Shelton Henderson (6'6/240 Fr F) 14.4ppg (#19 ACC) on 62.2% FGs (#3).
#10 Tru Washington (6'4/204 Jr G) 2 seasons U of New Mexico, All-Mtn West HM. 11.8ppg, 1.8 steals/game (#7 ACC). Likely to guard Okarie?
#8 Ernest Udeh Jr. (6'11/266 Sr C) 2022 McDs AA. 1 season Kansas, 2 at TCU (All-big 12 HM). Leads the ACC with 10.1rpg.
Other key players:
#35 Dante Allen (6'4/220 Fr G)
#88 Timo Malovec (6'8/215 Fr F) Slovakian with 2 years in the Adriatic Basketball Association. A better version of Cameron Grant - 29/81 from 3, while just 3/8 from 2.
Stanford's 2-game losing "streak" could easily become 5. Hopefully, Kyle Smith & Co. can right the ship as they have in the past.