Lawrence pushes the Hurricanes

CORAL GABLES — It might be a short span, but Miami is finally enjoying the best stretch of its Atlantic Coast Conference schedule.

Dejan Vasiljevic scored 21 points to lead the Hurricanes to an 80-65 victory over Georgia Tech Saturday afternoon.

Anthony Lawrence finished with 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists and Ebuka Izundu scored 18 points for the Hurricanes, who have won three of their last five after a five game losing streak. Miami also began conference play with three consecutive losses.

“We’re really clicking right now,” Vasiljevic said. “We’re playing really hard on defense and giving a lot of effort. Our offense is clicking at the right time and we’re sharing the ball.”

Vasiljevic scored 16 points in the second half. The junior guard shot 7 of

15 from the field and 5 of 11

3-pointers. Lawrence finished one assist short of his first career triple-double.

“I really wanted to get that triple-double,” Lawrence said. “I wasn’t able to but we got a good team win. I’m happy.”

The Hurricanes (12-14,

4-10 ACC) never trailed and were never threatened after a 13-3 run that helped open a 17-point lead midway through the first half. Chris Lykes, Anthony Mack and Sam Waardenburg hit 3-pointers that keyed Miami’s surge. Lykes’ short jumper with

8:09 remaining capped the run and increased the Hurricanes’ lead to 30-13.

Lykes was Miami’s fourth scorer in double figures with 11 points.

Lawrence’s 3-pointer at the buzzer gave Miami a

39-23 advantage at halftime.

“I’m very, very pleased with the victory,” Miami coach Jim Larranaga said. “We played great defense in the first half. The guys really shared the ball in the first half.”

The Yellow Jackets

(12-16, 4-11) got no closer than 51-40 on Michael Devoe’s 3-pointer with 14:01 remaining in the second half.

Miami responded with a 3-pointer from Vasiljevic and Lawrence’s basket. Vasiljevic’s last 3-pointer with 4:31 remaining gave the Hurricanes their largest lead at 70-52.

“The second half, our defense in the first six minutes was not very good and gave them a chance to get back in it,” Larranaga said. “Fortunately, we played a lot better in the last 13 minutes and were able to come away with a terrific victory.”

Jose Alvarado scored 20 points and Moses Wright finished with 19 points for Georgia Tech.

“Our energy in the first half was not as good as the second half,” Yellow Jackets coach Josh Pastner said. “We lost the game in the first half.”

AL DIAZ/AP Miami guard Dejan Vasiljevic (1), who scored 21 points, looks to pass to center Ebuka Izundu (15) as Georgia Tech guard Jose Alvarado (10) defends on Saturday.