Miami Hurricanes Ready for Redemption Against Virginia
The Miami Hurricanes are on a mission. After a thrilling 78-73 victory over No.
24 Louisville in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals, Miami has improved to 2-0 against teams that previously bested them this season. Now, they set their sights on a rematch with No.
10 Virginia, who edged them out 86-83 in a nail-biter back in February.
Senior center Ernest Udeh summed up the team’s focus: “Go back to the drawing board and onto the next, Virginia, Virginia, Virginia. We lost to them at their home, a great environment, a great team, well-coached, they got great pieces.
But understanding that above all else, we got to play our brand of basketball. We sit down on the defensive end and it's hard for any team to play against us when we're locked in like that, like tonight."
Virginia (28-4) shot an impressive 58 percent from the floor in their previous encounter, a stat Miami is keenly aware of. The Hurricanes had the game tied in the closing seconds, only for a foul to seal their fate.
Tre Donaldson, reflecting on that moment, said, "We're excited. We're looking forward.
We're not really worried about what happened back then. We're worried about what's in front of us and how we're going to attack it.
That's definitely in the back of our minds that we get a chance to play them again in a statement game."
Since that loss, Miami (25-7) has been on a tear, winning four of their last five games. Donaldson added, "They haven't seen this version of us yet. They saw a different version of us so just continue to be us no matter what and it's going to be physical."
The Hurricanes have shown resilience, also avenging a previous defeat to Florida State. Freshman shooting guard Dante Allen emphasized the importance of these opportunities: "The fact that we get to play against two teams that we lost to during the season is something that we can't take for granted.
It's something that we're going to have to bring it all out for. Obviously Virginia is a top-10 team in the country, a really good team, they're solid, they play together.
But we were right there at their place at the end of the game and I don't think we played our best. I think the biggest thing for us is kind of knowing the level we have to bring tomorrow and then just going out and showing it."
Miami is eyeing a spot in their second ACC Championship game since joining the conference in 2004, with their lone title coming in 2013. Meanwhile, Virginia, boasting a 12-1 record in their last 13 games, is no stranger to the ACC title game, last appearing in 2023 and winning in 2018.
Freshman small forward Shelton Henderson knows the challenge ahead: "Another tough team, a tournament team, a team you'll see deep in the tournament. They have a lot of great size, some 7-footers over there. So we've got to attack them, play physical, like how we always do and just stay to our game plan."
As Miami prepares for this high-stakes showdown, fans can expect a battle where every play counts and redemption is within reach.