After Miami’s soul-crushing defeat on Monday in the College Football National Championship, Florida State twisted the knife even deeper into the hearts of ‘Canes fans on Tuesday night at the Watsco Center.
Miami men’s basketball (15-4, 4-2 ACC) fell 65-63 to the 7-11 Florida State Seminoles in a wire-to-wire final-minute thriller, losing for the first time at home all season.
Entering the contest, the Seminoles were ranked dead last in the ACC, winless through their five clashes in conference play.
Prior to tip-off, the University of Miami honored former head coach Jim Larrañaga with a ceremony celebrating his career accomplishments with the Hurricanes.
The team paid tribute to the college basketball icon by unfurling his custom banner to hang in the stadium’s rafters, spotlighting his extraordinary legacy with The U that included taking the program to its first-ever Final Four appearance in the 2023 NCAA Men’s Tournament. Unfortunately, Larrañaga’s night was overshadowed by the unexpected loss.
The upset comes off the heels of UM’s 10-point stumble against No. 18 Clemson on the road, marking the first time head coach Jai Lucas and his squad have dropped back-to-back games this year.
The Seminoles are now 15-1 against Miami across all meetings since January 2018, while the ‘Canes have not beaten their in-state rivals since 2023.
Miami played their best in the early stages, launching a 9-0 run when trailing by three to take a 19-13 advantage at the 11:30 mark of the first half. Tallahassee native Tre Donaldson finished with a game-high five assists and was the catalyst of this offensive barrage, drilling three of the team’s four field goals and capping off the scoring frenzy with an emphatic dunk off a fast break.
FSU and UM shared punches back and forth throughout the opening 20 minutes, with no side able to gain significant separation over the other. The largest lead for the Hurricanes came with 4:14 remaining before halftime, when Ernest Udeh Jr.’s slam extended the score to 32-26.
Florida State’s Kobe Magee buried an improbable triple from near center court at the buzzer to give the Seminoles a massive lift heading into the third quarter.
The margins grew even tighter in the second half, and neither team could pull ahead by more than five points.
Despite Miami possessing a lead for only 1:44 in the last frame of action, the Hurricanes kept the Seminoles at bay, forcing the outcome to be determined in the final 60 seconds.
With 59 ticks left, the ‘Canes forced a key stop on defense, causing a Florida State turnover on an uncharacteristic shot clock violation. Malik Reneau cashed in on the next possession, converting from the interior to bring Miami within one, down 62-63.
Another strong defensive effort triggered the visitors to come up empty-handed again, giving the Hurricanes an opportunity to retake the lead with just 20 seconds remaining.
Surging downhill, Reneau was fouled in the post while going up for a layup, sending him to the foul line to shoot two. The Indiana transfer only connected on one, leveling the score at 63 apiece.
With an eye on the timer, the Seminoles made one final push to score, draining over 18 seconds of running clock before Robert McCray V drew a foul in the paint while trying for a contested mid-range jumper.
McCray sealed the game by drilling both free throws, handing the ‘Canes their second heartbreaker in 24 hours.
Miami shot themselves out of the gym, going 25% from beyond the perimeter, the exact same clip they had the week prior in their ranked road loss to Clemson.
In addition, the Hurricanes struggled with costly giveaways, conceding 14 turnovers and 12 steals against FSU’s defense, ranked top 10 nationally in turnovers forced per game.
Coach Lucas voiced his frustration with the team’s mentality in the postgame press conference, stressing a need for a more intensified sense of urgency and a desperation to win among his players.
“Exactly what I talked about, our urgency and our desperation. If we do that, I think everything else will take care of it,” Lucas said after the game. “Right now we’re just kind of sluggishly getting through our stuff. We have to change it.”
Miami will look to course correct this upcoming Saturday at Syracuse. Tip-off is at 2 p.m. ET on the ACC Network with radio coverage on WVUM 90.5 FM.
