2019-20 Schedule

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A good opponent for Miami but a game Miami should win. Rebounding and defense will be the key.

Should win seems a bit strong to me. It's a game we can win, but Illinois will probably be 6 or 7 point favorites. Illinois is being regarded as a top 40 team this year (there is one projection site that has them as high as 13th in the nation, and Andy Katz has them at 15, both of which are absurd to me), while Miami is being regarded as a team ranked in the 50-60 range during the preseason. Plus the game is at Illinois.

That said, outside of the some potential matchups in the Charleston tournament, we don't have much in the way of quality opponents in our non-conference schedule, so that Illinois game could be vital to building our resume.
 
Should win seems a bit strong to me. It's a game we can win, but Illinois will probably be 6 or 7 point favorites. Illinois is being regarded as a top 40 team this year (there is one projection site that has them as high as 13th in the nation, and Andy Katz has them at 15, both of which are absurd to me), while Miami is being regarded as a team ranked in the 50-60 range during the preseason. Plus the game is at Illinois.

That said, outside of the some potential matchups in the Charleston tournament, we don't have much in the way of quality opponents in our non-conference schedule, so that Illinois game could be vital to building our resume.

Absolutely, if Miami goes 8-2 or worse in the non-conference portion of the schedule then that is not a good sign. Illinois and Florida are the only two ranked teams on our non-conference schedule. Temple and UCF are the only other teams who you would say have a chance of any post season play. Not necessarily NCAA tournament either so the Illinois and Florida game will hold a lot of weight on the Miami resume.
 
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Absolutely, if Miami goes 8-2 or worse in the non-conference portion of the schedule then that is not a good sign. Illinois and Florida are the only two ranked teams on our non-conference schedule. Temple and UCF are the only other teams who you would say have a chance of any post season play. Not necessarily NCAA tournament either so the Illinois and Florida game will hold a lot of weight on the Miami resume.
I believe all 4 of those teams you just mentioned are better than Miami. By a lot.... I really hope I'm missing something with this team but I flat out don't see it.
 
I believe all 4 of those teams you just mentioned are better than Miami. By a lot.... I really hope I'm missing something with this team but I flat out don't see it.
Unfortunately, the prognosticators, who seem to be right about the Canes more often than not when they are negative, agree with you. I also sure do hope you are missing something; looking like a long possibly painful season otherwise.
 
I believe all 4 of those teams you just mentioned are better than Miami. By a lot.... I really hope I'm missing something with this team but I flat out don't see it.

Talent wise, Miami is about the same or better than UCF and Temple. UCF is replacing much of the roster that made the NCAA tournament and I think Temple played in the NIT. Florida and Illinois have more proven talent than Miami but those games will depend on Miami's ability to score, defend and rebound. Also, depth will play a factor.

Funny how things always come back to roster management. I really tried hard not to bring that up. Honestly.
 
Talent wise, Miami is about the same or better than UCF and Temple. UCF is replacing much of the roster that made the NCAA tournament and I think Temple played in the NIT. Florida and Illinois have more proven talent than Miami but those games will depend on Miami's ability to score, defend and rebound. Also, depth will play a factor.

Funny how things always come back to roster management. I really tried hard not to bring that up. Honestly.
I see this offense struggling mightily when Vasil is off. He was our only offense last year. When he was off it was putrid. Watching Lykes shoot 25% from the floor when Vasil was off was cringeworthy.
 
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I see this offense struggling mightily when Vasil is off. He was our only offense last year. When he was off it was putrid. Watching Lykes shoot 25% from the floor when Vasil was off was cringeworthy.

Ok. I understand your point and you are correct. This is where I see a difference. Wong and Beverly are scorers. They don't have a problem creating shots. Also, McGusty is a shot creator as he can score and facilitate. Lykes will be Lykes. Walker and Stone will be solid contributors. The key is what does Miami get from Miller, Waardenburg, Gak

If the Italy exhibition games are any indication of what lies ahead for this season then Miami should be able to score points. Defense, rebounding and depth will be the keys to wins and losses. IMO.
 
I believe all 4 of those teams you just mentioned are better than Miami. By a lot.... I really hope I'm missing something with this team but I flat out don't see it.
Disagree with this. UCF lost a ton from last season (Taylor, Dawkins, Fall, and Allen are all gone), and while Temple returns more than UCF does, they lose Shizz Alston, who was pretty clearly their best player last season.

Temple is probably the better of the two, but they both look to be more like top 100 teams as opposed us to being in that 50-60 range. They aren't gimmes, especially since neither are at home, but I think we have the better team in each of those matchups.

Assuming we get by Missouri St. in Charleston (which, if we don't, we have much larger issues), then we should have Florida and then Xavier/UConn. Either of Xavier/UConn would be at least our third best matchup in the non-conference schedule, and you can make the argument Xavier is better than Illinois. I think we'd be underdogs against Xavier, while UConn would be more of a true tossup.
 
Disagree with this. UCF lost a ton from last season (Taylor, Dawkins, Fall, and Allen are all gone), and while Temple returns more than UCF does, they lose Shizz Alston, who was pretty clearly their best player last season.

Temple is probably the better of the two, but they both look to be more like top 100 teams as opposed us to being in that 50-60 range. They aren't gimmes, especially since neither are at home, but I think we have the better team in each of those matchups.

Assuming we get by Missouri St. in Charleston (which, if we don't, we have much larger issues), then we should have Florida and then Xavier/UConn. Either of Xavier/UConn would be at least our third best matchup in the non-conference schedule, and you can make the argument Xavier is better than Illinois. I think we'd be underdogs against Xavier, while UConn would be more of a true tossup.

Good points. I feel even better now about Miami beating Temple and UCF as I now know I am not the only one thinking in that perspective.

Either UCONN or Xavier would be a good game for Miami, especially if Miami is playing them in the Championship game in Charleston.
 
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I see Jordan Nwora, 6'8, 225 SF for Louisville is pretty much a pre-season Consensus All-American. Favorite for ACC POY.

Kid is a force inside (scoring and on the boards), and can create his own shot with ease. Who do we have who can guard him in that first ACC game of the season?
 
I see Jordan Nwora, 6'8, 225 SF for Louisville is pretty much a pre-season Consensus All-American. Favorite for ACC POY.

Kid is a force inside (scoring and on the boards), and can create his own shot with ease. Who do we have who can guard him in that first ACC game of the season?

Start with McGusty then Walker follow by some zone defense.
 


Should have had USF on the schedule this season to boast our non-conference schedule. Outside of Illinois and Florida, our non-conference schedule only has two NCAA tournament teams on it unless Temple and UCF exceed expectations.
 
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