Friday’s Sweet 16 matchup between No. 10 Miami and No. 11 Iowa State was a game of turnovers and transitions with the Hurricanes coming out on top to advance to the program’s first ever Elite Eight.
From the opening tip, Miami came to play. The Hurricanes took a 7-0 lead with three different players getting on the board. A quick timeout by Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger allowed the Cyclones to regroup before they scored eight unanswered points of their own.
The half continued as a game of runs as both teams got out in transition. Miami created a few points of separation only for Iowa State to counter with a streak of their own to close the gap.
With five minutes remaining and Miami up 25-21, the rims went quiet. Eight straight shots were missed between the two teams -- four each -- as the score remained unchanged for two minutes. It was Iowa State’s George Conditt IV who eventually broke the stalemate at the free throw line.
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From there, the teams were back out running, going back and forth down the court. Iowa State’s Izaiah Brockington eventually got the last laugh of the half when he converted a steal into a layup with six seconds left to cut the lead to three.
All 32 of Miami’s first-half points came from the balanced trio of Jordan Miller, Sam Waardenburg and Kameron McGusty, all of whom recorded double-digit points.
Returning from the halftime break, Iowa State guard Tyrese Hunter tried to set the tone for the Cyclones, hitting back-to-back layups. The balanced offense of Miami, however, was too much for 18-year-old Hunter to keep up with.
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Miami guard Charlie Moore missed a 3-point attempt only to get a second look courtesy of an offensive board by Miller. Meanwhile, Miller knocked down two free throws of his own followed by a jumper by McGusty to push the Miami lead to eight.
Moore, who had been electric through the first two games of the tournament averaging 15.5 points, six rebounds and six assists, struggled to find his shot. The sixth-year senior scored just five points but found other ways to contribute, accounting for nine of the team’s 21 assists.
After six misses and two minutes without a scoring change, the Iowa State offense got a jolt of life. A backdoor cut by Gabe Kalscheur and a low-block feed to Robert Jones brought the Cyclones within five with just over 10 minutes remaining, prompting Miami head coach Jay Larranaga to call a timeout.
Iowa State brought pressure out of the break but Miami continued to find an answer, usually through McGusty, who the Cyclones seemingly couldn’t stop. The sixth-year senior led all scorers with 27 points on 10 of 18 shooting from the field.
“We knew they were going to come out and pressure us,” Waardenburg said. “We had the most turnovers we’ve had this tournament but we kept our identity and forced 18 turnovers as well.”
Just when it seemed like the momentum was swinging back toward Iowa State, Waardenburg deflected a pass at the midcourt logo and capped it off with a two-handed dunk on the other end. It was all Miami from that point on.
“I was able to get a hand on the ball, get out and dunk it,” he said. “It’s the energy from the bend and the energy from these guys, that’s what really swings you, not the dunk …”
A shot clock violation on Miami gave Iowa State the ball down nine with four minutes to work. They continued to crash the offensive boards and stick to their offensive schemes, but the shots just weren’t falling and fatigue seemed to show on Iowa State’s part. Already leading by nine, the Hurricanes went on a 9-4 run to build a 14-point cushion.
Having stepped up when his team needed him most, Hunter scored a quick 2. With 2:38 remaining, Iowa State pulled out the full-court pressure again, but Miami made them pay. Moore launched a full-court pass to Miller who quickly hit a streaking Isaiah Wong who finished through contact.
To their credit, Iowa State hit a 3-pointer on the subsequent play and the Hurricanes got a little sloppy against the pressure. But the Cyclones just couldn’t make the pieces work to mount a comeback down the stretch.
With 1:50 remaining, Wong returned the favor and found Miller for an alley-oop and the celebration was on. The Hurricanes continued to push the pace down the final minutes and the Cyclones appeared fatigued. Fittingly, McGusty rounded out the score with a fastbreak layup to secure the 70-56 win and give Miami its best postseason finish in program history.
Miami fans threw up the U as they celebrated this team’s Cinderella run.
While Iowa State owned the stat sheet in a number of categories, including rebounds and points off the bench -- which they had 24 of compared to Miami’s zero -- the Hurricanes scored points where it mattered. Their 21 assists, 11 steals and 14 points off turnovers are just a few of the indicators of how pace played into this matchup.
Miami became the last team to punch its ticket to the Elite Eight, joining fellow ACC teams No. 8 North Carolina and No. 2 Duke. They'll now face No. 1 Kansas on Sunday at 2:20 p.m. ET. Addressing the success of the conference in the tournament, Larranaga said it’s a confirmation of the ACC’s strength.
“All during the season I tried to explain, our league is really, really good. … And our games -- we played like 17 or 18 games decided on the last possession,” Larranaga said. “There’s a reason for that. That opponent we were playing was really good too. But very proud of being a part of the ACC.”
