After a difficult road loss to Florida State, the Miami Hurricanes men’s basketball team (6-21, 2-14 ACC) aimed to recover against the Virginia Tech Hokies (12-15, 7-9 ACC). However, on Saturday night at the Watsco Center, Miami fell to Virginia Tech by a score of 81-68.
The Hurricanes were without their best player, Matthew Cleveland, who leads the team in scoring with an average of 16.3 points per game. His absence created a significant gap in their offense. However, junior A.J. Staton-McCray rose to the occasion, contributing 21 points on an efficient 6-of-11 shooting from the field, despite the team’s loss. Staton-McCray continued his strong offensive stretch on Saturday night, scoring in double figures for the fourth time in five games and surpassing 1,000 career points while leading the Hurricanes in scoring.
Alongside Staton-McCray, three different Hurricanes joined him in double figures. Senior Lynn Kidd poured in 16 points, sophomore Paul Djobet scored 12, and senior Brandon Johnson finished with 10 to keep the game within reach against the Hokies.
The first half saw an efficient display of offense from both schools, as Virginia Tech shot 53.3 percent from the field, while Miami closely followed with a shooting percentage of 52%. The Hokies established an early lead of eight but Miami was determined to keep up. Staton-McCray led all Miami scorers with an impressive 12 points in the first half. A crucial three-pointer from freshman Austin Swartz tied the game at 38 entering the break.
Early in the second half, Miami capitalized on the momentum and captured a 48-42 lead, thanks to a three from Staton-McCray at the 15:14 mark. Virginia Tech would respond to this with an 18-2 run of their own, taking a commanding 10-point lead 60-50. The ‘Canes attempted to rally behind Djobet, who scored 8 of his 12 points in the second half, but the Hokies’ sharpshooting from behind the arc proved to be too much for Miami, as they drained seven three-pointers in the second half and ultimately pulled away for the victory.
The Hokies were led by sophomore Jaydon Young, who exploded with a 27-point performance that was his best of the season, and the first time that he reached the 20-point mark. Joining him was senior Ben Burnham who poured in 14 points and drained four three-pointers for Virginia Tech.
The Hurricanes will look to end a three-game losing streak on Tuesday night when they host No. 3 Duke at the Watsco Center. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m., with the game airing nationally on ESPN.