(Editor’s note: Special thanks to Martin Rickman with http://www.bloggersodear.com/ for working on this preview and advanced scouting on Wake Forest)

Miami returns to action Saturday (1PM EST Raycom) with a visit from the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. The ‘Canes hope to return to their winning ways, following a 73-64 loss to North Carolina, in one of the most physical contests of the season. Wake Forest looks to build on a 59-50 win over Georgia Tech that snapped a six game ACC losing streak. With just 5 games remaining before the ACC tournament this is a game that is critical for Miami’s NCAA Tournament hopes. The Hurricanes will have to contain Travis McKie and CJ Harris, who combined account for nearly half of their team’s scoring.

 

Projected Starting Lineups:

Miami

C Reggie Johnson                   6’10 290 JR

F Kenny Kadji                          6’11 260 SO

G Shane Larkin                       5’11 160 FR

G Malcolm Grant                     6’1 188  SR

G Durand Scott                       6’4 198  JR

 

Wake Forest

F Nikita Mescheriakov            6’8 200  SR

F Travis McKie                        6’7 210  SO

G Tony Chennault                   6’2 195  SO

G Chase Fischer                     6’3 180  FR

G C.J. Harris                            6’3 190  JR

 

Keys to the Game: Recover mentally, physically. The UNC game was brutal on multiple fronts. Durand Scott landed awkwardly with under a minute to go, and limped off the court. Reggie Johnson was bent up like a 290 pound pretzel on multiple occasions. Kenny Kadji probably made sure his wallet wasn’t missing following the muggings he took (not to mention an elbow to the face). Additionally the ‘Canes will have to overcome the disappointment of losing a home game in front of a packed house, in which none of the breaks went their way. Jim Larranaga’s motivational skills will be tested if UM is to avoid coming out flat.

Stay Intense for 40 minutes. In many of Wake’s losses, one big run has undone them. If Miami senses even the slightest let up, they need to capitalize. Trey McKinney-Jones needs to continue his hot shooting and Malcolm Grant needs to rediscover his for this to happen.

Best Match-up: Trey McKinney Jones/Rion Brown VS Travis McKie. McKie is a talented wing who has played well in all facets, despite Wake’s struggles. His consistent production (16.0 ppg 7.3 rpg) will be tough to stop. McKinney Jones played very well against UNC, and his offensive production will be needed down the stretch. Brown is a lock down defender and spot up shooter who has surprised of late with his explosive ability to play above the rim. If the combination of McKinney Jones and Brown can outplay McKie, Miami should win easily.

Prediction: Wake Forest keeps it close early behind McKie and Harris, while Miami fights through the hangover of the UNC loss. Behind the spirited play of  Kadji, McKinney Jones, and Brown UM will surge and make a big second half run. UM fans everywhere exhale, Canes cruise 70-54.

 

 

Here is our full Q&A with http://www.bloggersodear.com/

Please check out their site full our answers to their Q&A.

 

C6: If you could pick an all time Wake Forest team, who would be the starters? Who would be the go to player? Who would be the team captain?

BSD: Oh wow, you’re hitting me hard with this one. For an-all Wake team, let’s go with this:

PG: Chris Paul, SG: Randolph Childress, SF: Josh Howard, PF: Dickie Hemric, C: Tim Duncan

That team is almost unstoppable. Team captain is Paul/Duncan. They’ll split. CP3 will be the vocal leader and Duncan will lead on the court. Chill is the go-to player. Paul can drive and dish to him for open looks, while the offense can run through Duncan to get J-Ho on curls and get Dickie some nice midrange jumpers. Man, that team would be fun to watch.

C6: CJ Harris and Travis McKie are having very nice seasons. Has Wake Forest’s struggles simply been lack of support for their two stars?

BSD: It is partly that, and largely a lack of depth entirely. Outside of those two, Wake gets really nothing offensively out of the rest of the team. Freshman Chase Fischer has shown flashes at times, but if he goes cold, he tends to get down on himself a little bit. Tony Chennault gets into trouble by making bad decisions and driving too far in the lane with nowhere to go. Nikita Mescheriakov is a complete and unmitigated disaster with the basketball. Carson Desrosiers is playing out of position for the most part. Ty Walker is limited offensively. And…well, that’s about it.

C6: What are the strengths and weakness for the Demon Deacons this season? What does the future of the program look like? How do fans feel about Head Coach Jeff Bzdelik?

BSD: Wake is really good at free throws and pretty good at getting blocks on the defensive end. There are your strengths. Weaknesses are…well, everything else. C.J. Harris can hit open jumpers, Travis McKie is a talented all-around player and Ty Walker and Carson Desrosiers are good at altering shots around the rim defensively. Aside from that, the Deacs can’t rebound, can’t run an offense and can’t defend on the perimeter. The future is brighter though. Next year’s class features six players, all of whom have received some sort of positive publicity recently. Devin Thomas got a lot of tv time for his backboard-breaking dunk in the MidPenn tournament on Thursday night, Codi Miller-Mcintyre is a legit Top 100 player, Aaron Rountree is one of the best ambassadors for the Demon Deacons the team has seen in recent years and he hasn’t even stepped on the court, Arnaud Moto has a ton of athleticism and looks to be a lockdown defender already, while Tyler Cavanaugh and Andre Washington both offer some upside and depth for the team. With regards to Bzdelik, it’s hard to get into this in a short format. Fans are rightfully irked at the lack of improvement and the midseason slide. The team doesn’t seem to be getting better, it looks woefully bad running offensive sets and frequently players lose their assignments on the defensive end, and to add insult to injury, the coach is not endearing himself to anyone with his postgame comments of late. He was a questionable hire at best when he was brought in. Whether or not he can even bring the Deacs to even a .500 record and some semblance of respectability is still up for debate.

C6: Which players on Miami are match-up concerns for Wake? Who could potentially have a big game for Wake?  What is your prediction for this Saturday’s game?

BSD: There are not very many matchup “problems” for the Hurricanes. The ‘Canes guards are far and above better than what Wake Forest has outside of C.J. Harris, and Miami has the size to bother Wake. Something clicked in Travis McKie against Georgia Tech in the second half, and I’d say he’s the biggest thing UM has to worry about as he can beat you from the perimeter and inside. I think this is a game that Miami should control from the get-go. Wake doesn’t play very well on the road, and gave really everything they had to win against GT in a game that set basketball back about two or three decades. I don’t see this one being close unless the ‘Canes come out flat. Let’s go with Miami 73, Wake 58.

C6: Which teams from the ACC do you see making the field of 68 in the NCAA Tournament?

BSD: I’ve been saying for awhile now that I think the ACC gets five in. Duke and UNC are locks. Florida State should be good to go (escaping Virginia Tech was a big deal though), and UVA will get in because the committee gives a lot of weight to injuries (and it’s clear the Cavaliers have been a different team since Sene got hurt). That leaves one more – and that will be between Miami and N.C. State. The Wolfpack missed a golden opportunity to get in with a bullet against Duke, and now I think whichever team finishes higher will get in, the other will be the one of the last four out.

 

Thanks again to Martin with http://www.bloggersodear.com/ for working with us on this preview.

Go ‘Canes!!!!!