There was a lot of excitement a decade ago when conference realignment saw the ACC boosted up to 15 teams, with several new fantastic basketball programs. National powers like Duke and North Carolina have been awesome in recent memory, but newer additions like Louisville and Syracuse have definitely disappointed in recent years. In that last decade, few likely expected a program like Miami Basketball to pick up some of that slack.
Last season, the Hurricanes were further than an afterthought. Nobody expected much from Miami, who were picked near the bottom of a strong ACC. As it turned out, the conference wasn’t as strong as expected and the Hurricanes were far better as well. Coach Jim Larranaga, who took 11-seed George Mason to the Final Four five years before taking the Miami job in 2011, nearly had a second trip to the Tournament’s third weekend.
The Hurricanes finished the season fourth in the ACC, earned a 10-seed in the NCAA Tournament, and advanced to the Elite Eight, upending USC, Auburn, and Iowa State, before running out of gas against eventual champion Kansas. They were the second-most unlikely Elite Eight team based on preseason expectations (shout out to Saint Peter’s) and certainly took both the ACC and national as a whole by surprise with their play.
Moving forward, does this mean we can expect more out of the Hurricanes? While this program will lose a few very important pieces, namely super seniors Kameron McGusty and Charlie Moore, there are some intriguing new faces in key roles for the Hurricanes. Larranaga had this program in fantastic shape before the FBI investigation threw a wrench in their plans, but are things back to normal at Miami?
We’re going to take a deep dive into this Miami team and try to figure that out for ourselves, seeing what to expect from a Miami team coming off one of their best seasons in program history. The ACC has numerous strong basketball programs, but the Hurricanes have managed to carve their path at times in recent years. With some fantastic new talent and renewed excitement, does Miami have what it takes to pull off a second successful season and postseason run?