UM ousted from ACC tournament by Boston College, losing its 10th in a row
WASHINGTON
Quinten Post paired 30 points with 13 rebounds to propel Boston College past Miami 81-65 in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament on Tuesday.
Post netted 17 points in the first half, including nine during a 14-0 run that gave the 11th-seeded Eagles (18-14) a lead they never relinquished. Jaeden Zackery chipped in 16 points for Boston College, which faces sixth-seeded Clemson in the final second-round game on Wednesday.
Norchad Omier powered the 14th-seeded Hurricanes (15-17) with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Nijel Pack added 18 in his return to the lineup after missing five of Miami’s last six games with a lower-body injury.
Matthew Cleveland chipped in 12 points as the Hurricanes, who made the Final Four last year, finished the season with 10 straight losses and an 0-3 mark against Boston College.
“It’s been a very challenging season. I feel like whatever strategy we had throughout the season just didn’t materialize as a way to really play our best basketball,” UM coach Jim Larrañaga said. “Some of it was the injuries and the lack of chemistry we had because of it. Some of it, quite frankly, is the opponent.
“I think Boston College was very, very good. Quinten Post is an NBA player. They’re perimeter outstanding shooters, and if they shoot the ball as well as they did tonight from three-point range and get the ball to Quinten Post inside, I think they have a heck of a chance of winning tomorrow, as well.”
Miami trailed by 16 midway through the second half before whittling its deficit to 64-56 on Michael Nwoko’s layup with 8:04 to play.
Devin McGlockton answered to calm the Hurricanes’ surge, and Post followed with a threepointer from the top of the key that widened the Eagles’ lead to 69-56.
Boston College held at least an 11-point lead over the final seven minutes to notch its third straight win.
The Eagles led 47-32 at halftime after shooting 50 percent from the field and drilling eight three-pointers.
Omier muscled in two baskets to spring Miami ahead 7-2 before the pace quickened as both teams warmed up from distance.
After Mason Madsen hit the Eagles’ first threepointer, the Hurricanes and Post each drilled two treys in a 55-second span to level the score at 13.
Post continued to cook, scoring the game’s next five points as the Hurricanes’ offense stalled. Madsen drilled another triple and Post tacked on two free throws to cap the 14-0 stretch that boosted Boston College ahead 27-13 at the 11:10 mark of the first half.
Pack’s free throw ended a 3:56 scoreless stretch for Miami, which clawed within 34-26 on Bensley Joseph’s jumper with 5 1⁄2 minutes to play.
Despite the disappointing record and injuries, Pack said “it was a really fun season being with these guys once again and returning and being a leader for this team. All the memories that we got to make as a team, and we traveled to a bunch of different places. And it was a lot of fun with those guys, especially in France and the Bahamas. I feel like I build memories with these guys.
“It’s been a challenging year for us, but some people — sometimes you’ve got to go through adversity and get over the hump to see the better side. Just continue to work hard, and then what comes next year just comes down the line.”
Asked if he will return to UM for his final year of eligiblity, Pack said: “Got to meet with Coach and my parents and my family and things like that and see how it goes.”