Boston College will try to build on the momentum it generated during the second half of Tuesday’s victory over Louisville when it hosts Miami in Atlantic Coast Conference action Saturday in Chestnut Hill, Mass.
BC (14-10, 5-8 ACC) trailed Louisville by eight points at halftime but outscored the Cardinals 50-30 in the second half to earn an 89-77 victory. The Eagles shot 60.0 percent from the field in the second half, when they made 7 of 11 3-point attempts.
BC took control with a 20-1 run that built a 68-55 lead with 10:34 to play.
“I thought we played a really good second half,” Eagles coach Earl Grant said. “A big part of it was the defense.
“I just hope we keep getting better. That’s the biggest thing I want to see. In March, if we’re playing our best basketball, who knows what could happen.”
The second half was a problem for Miami (15-10, 6-8) in Wednesday’s 77-60 loss at Clemson. The Hurricanes were outscored 46-30 in the final 20 minutes and the Tigers ended the game on a 24-3 run.
“I thought it was a very well-played game in the first half and we did some of the things we planned on doing very well,” Miami coach Jim Larranaga said.
“We ended the game with 17 assists, which is something that’s been lacking. We played a pretty darn good 10, 12, 13 minutes. I’m not sure when it got away from us, but about five minutes to go, the tide completely changed. They scored and we didn’t.”
Saturday’s matchup will feature two of the top players in the ACC. Miami’s Norchad Omier, a junior forward, ranks sixth in the league in scoring (17.8) and second in rebounding (10.0). He had 18 points and 12 boards in the loss to Clemson for his seventh double-double in his past eight games.
BC center Quinten Post, a senior, is 10th in the ACC in scoring (16.1) and averages 7.8 rebounds per game.
Miami, which is 2-6 on the road, will be trying to end a three-game losing streak. Boston College is 9-4 at home.
–Field Level Media