The fifth-placed Miami Hurricanes delivered another March Madness shock to an 88-81 win over Texas and secured a place in the Final Four for the first time in school history.
Jordan Miller and Isaiah Wong clinched Miami from a 13-point deficit in the second half, while Norchad Omier made two big free throws and an even more important steal down the stretch to secure the big win over the two seeded.
Miller finished with 27 points, going 7-of-7 from the field and 13-of-13 from the foul line, while Wong scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half to beat the Longhorns, who have been the best remaining seedling in a Topsy were. turvy NCAA tournament.
After falling short in the Elite Eight a year ago, the fifth-seeded Hurricanes (29-7) travel to Houston’s NRG Stadium on Saturday night to meet No. 4 UConn. Two other first-time Final Four entrants, 5-seeded San Diego State and 9-seeded Florida Atlantic, will play in the other national semifinals.
It’s the first time since the seeding began in 1979 that no team higher than No. 4 has reached the Final Four, and perhaps it’s fitting that Miami coach Jim Larranaga has a hand in it. He is returning to the Final Four after guiding George Mason there in 2006 as the 11th seed.
Jordan Miller (C), who was 13/13 from the free throw line, celebrates against Texas on Sunday
Jim Larranaga led 11-man George Mason to the Final Four in 2006 – now he’s returning
Violent scenes erupted in Kansas City, Missouri as the Miami Hurricanes celebrated the win
“Nobody wanted to go home,” said Miller, who, along with Duke’s Christian Laettner, became the only player since 1960 to combine 20-20 from the field and foul line in an NCAA tournament game. “We came together. We stuck together. We’ve shown really good stamina and the will – the will to just want to get there.’
Miami and Texas were 79-all when Omier, known for his bloody style of play, was fouled by the Longhorns’ Brock Cunningham while looking for a loose ball. He made both fouls to put the Hurricanes ahead, then stole the ball from Texas star Marcus Carr at the other end, and Wong made more free throws with 34 seconds remaining.
Miller continued to drill foul shots on the track to freeze the Midwest Region title for the Hurricanes.
Wooga Poplar scored 16 points and Nijel Pack continued his virtuoso performance against top seed Houston at 15 as the same school that once dropped all hoops in the 1970s rose to the game’s biggest stage.
Marcus Carr led the Longhorns (29-9) by 17 points despite appearing to be plagued by a hamstring injury sustained late in the game. Timmy Allen added 16 points and Sir’Jabari Rice finished with 15 points in a season that began with the dismissal of Chris Beard on domestic violence charges, which were later dropped, and ended with caretaker coach Rodney Terry following his team a heartbreaking defeat.
The Longhorns announced about 90 minutes before the tip that Big 12 Tournament MVP and early NCAA Tournament star Dylan Disu would miss the game with a foot injury. He was injured in the second round against Penn State and only played about 90 seconds in the sweet 16 against Xavier before seeing the rest of that game in a hiking boot.
He was still wearing that awkward boot as he watched in terror on Sunday.
Marcus Carr celebrates a three-pointer, but it was Texas who went home with the L
Larranaga wraps the net around his neck after cutting it at the T-Mobile Center on Sunday
Miami players react after reaching the first Final Four in school history – all as No. 5
Without their 6ft 9 star in the suit, the Longhorns’ deep group of dangerous guards resorted to perimeter potshots against Miami’s porous defenses. Rice hit two 3s early, Carr added two of his own, and the Longhorns — who set a high school tournament record with 13 3s in the first round against Colgate — hit seven up front to take a 45-37 lead at halftime.
On the other hand, Texas decided to stop Pack and Wong from producing a continuation of their 3-point barrage against Houston.
Pack, who dropped seven 3s in the regional semifinals, didn’t even try one until 7 1/2 minutes remained in the first half, and his best shot — a rainbow across the backboard as he fell out of bounds — did don’t even count.
Wong made as many shots and scored as many points (two) as he had turnovers in the first 20 minutes of the game.
The Longhorns’ lead stretched to 13 in the second half, and tension began to build on the Miami bench. At one point Harlond Beverly tried unsuccessfully to drive against two established defenders and Larrañaga not only tongued the substitute at the next stoppage but then yanked him out of the game.
Luckily for the ‘Canes, Pack and Wong were ready, Poplar and Miller seemingly possessed.
Dillon Mitchell celebrates two of his four points in 13 minutes of play after a dunk
Hurricanes players huddle in the second half of the game which they later won
Wooga Poplar had 16 points and six rebounds for victorious Miami against No. 2 Texas
Still down 72-64 with about eight minutes to go, backcourt Dynamo joined Miller and Omier to accelerate a 13-3 run to give the Hurricanes a 77-75 lead, their first since the first minutes. And when Rice answered for Texas at the other end, it was Miller who started his late-game save to the foul line with two go-ahead free throws.
Carr made a skillful turnaround jump to level the game again for Texas, but Miami’s momentum never faltered.
Omier made his free throws with a minute left, snatching the ball from Carr and Miller and company made up at the foul line.
“Last year we made the Elite Eight here and it’s coming to a devastating end,” said Larranaga. “Tonight, last night, all the guys just kept talking, ‘We’ve got to get past the Elite Eight and get to the Final Four.’