No. 17 Miami defeated North Florida 89-51 Monday night at the Watsco Center, earning its second consecutive victory.
Malik Reneau led the way with 16 points for the Hurricanes.
He was the leading scorer last season for UM, averaging 18.9 points per contest, but has struggled so far this season. Miami head coach Jai Lucas will continue to look to get Reneau going as he adjusts to a team built differently than a year ago.
Shelton Henderson, Robert Miller III, Caleb Gaskins, and Somto Cyril were all in double figures as well.
Point guard Acaden Lewis struggled to score the ball, shooting just 1-8 from the field. However, he did a great job facilitating and getting his teammates involved with 8 assists.
The Hurricanes got off to a 12-5 start behind eight early points from Reneau.
Miami continued to control the game throughout the first half, leading 29-19 with 7:32 left.
North Florida was hanging around thanks to six UM turnovers, multiple of which came on offensive fouls.
It was all UM for the rest of the first half. Headlined by a Miller alley-oop from Lewis and two three-pointers from Nick Dorn, the Hurricanes went on a 19-6 run to take a 44-25 lead into halftime.
Reneau led all scorers in the first half with 12. Cyril led the charge on defense with three early blocks.
The Hurricanes continue to extend the margin, leading 66-40 halfway through the second half.
Henderson, who finished with 14 points, began to get out in transition for several dunks and layups.
UM continued its dominant performance throughout the remainder of the game.
One area to improve for Miami was three-point shooting. UM continued to struggle from beyond the arc, shooting just 5-27.
The Hurricanes will need to clean this up before heading to Las Vegas for the Players Era tournament in a few weeks. Upper-level opponents will use it to their advantage, as No. 1 Florida proved last week in Tampa by condensing the paint and preventing Shelton and Reneau from getting a rhythm driving to the basket.
UM (2-1) will look to extend its winning streak on Friday, as it takes on North Alabama (2-0) at the Watsco Center.
Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. EST, with coverage on ACC Network and WVUM 90.5 FM.