2010-2011 ACC Preview

#6: Miami

Games against 2010 NCAA Tournament teams: 11
Best non-conference game: Dec. 4 vs. West Virginia

Projected Starting Five:
C - Reggie Johnson (Sophomore)
F - Julian Gamble (Junior)
F - DeQuan Jones (Junior)
G - Durand Scott (Sophomore)
G - Malcolm Grant (Junior)

Miami has been an interesting team since its entry into the ACC. It has had a number of years with fairly good success, including one NCAA Tournament bid. But Miami has also finished under .500 in conference every year except one. Last year, the Hurricanes really struggled, finishing 4-12 in conference. But they did win two games in the ACC Tournament and threatened Duke in a third. So a lot of people are high on their chances this year.

So let's take a look at what they have. Miami loses Dwayne Collins, who was a good big man. But they actually played better without him at the end of last year. They have a solid guard in Durand Scott, who started to really play well at the end of the year. And they have an emerging talent at center in Reggie Johnson. Miami does have a solid coach in Frank Haith who has won his share of big games.

The best Miami has done in the ACC is finish 8-8, and that was with superstar Jack McClinton. So I can't project them to do better than that without him. They do have more talent than several ACC teams, so I think they have a good chance of finishing in the middle of the pack. In the non-conference, Miami plays West Virginia at home and Memphis on the road. Other than that, there is not much to speak about. I see the Hurricanes getting off to another good start before hitting some road bumps in conference play. They have a decent shot of making the tournament this year.