Pitt Vs. Miami Preview: Everything You Need to Know

On Saturday afternoon, Pitt will have the chance to win its third-straight game, this time against the Miami Hurricanes.

Let’s dive into the preview for the game.

PITT’S OUTLOOK

After a rough 1-5 start to ACC play, Pitt (12-7, 3-5 ACC) has now won two-straight conference games on the road, beating No 7 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium and then Georgia Tech in Atlanta. After returning home for a couple of days, the team then flew down to Miami, where it has a chance to improve to 4-5 in conference play.

MIAMI HURRICANES (13-6, 4-4 ACC)

HEAD COACH

Jim Larranaga (13th season)

Last year’s Hurricanes, who narrowly defeated Pitt in Coral Gables for the ACC Regular Season title, finished the year with a stellar 29-8 record, making all the way to the Final Four. There, they lost to UConn, who went on to win the national title.

This year, the Hurricanes are back with a similar core of players. However, they do not have stars Isaiah Wong (Indiana Pacers) and Jordan Miller (LA Clippers) this season after both went off to the pros.

LEADING SCORERS

Norchad Omier – Forward – 18.1 PPG

Omier is a 6-foot-7 forward who has established himself as one of the top big men in the ACC over the past two seasons. In last season’s nail-biting win over Pitt in Coral Gables, Omier went 6 for 12, scoring 15 points, grabbing 13 rebounds, blocking two shots, and dishing out three assists.

Matthew Cleveland – Wing – 14.8 PPG

Cleveland transferred over from Florida State this past offseason. In two games against Pitt last year, he had 11 points and eight rebounds (game one) and six points and six rebounds in game two.

Wooga Poplar – Guard – 14.7 PPG

Poplar is a name that Pitt fans certainly remember from last year. In the final regular season game of the year, he went 6 for 8 from three-point range to score 18 points in a huge effort to beat the Panthers. This year, he’s shooting over 46% from three.

Nijel Pack – Guard – 14.1 PPG

Pack is scoring 14.1 points per game on average, while shooting 48% from the field and 40% from three.

ROADKILL

The Panthers have won four of their five road games this season, with wins at West Virginia, Louisville, and most recently, Duke and Georgia Tech. Per Pitt’s game notes, Jaland Lowe, Blake Hinson, Bub Carrington, and Guillermo Diaz-Graham are all shooting better than 40% from three-point range in road games this year.

METRICS

Pitt is ranked No. 68 in KenPom. Com’s ratings, while Miami is ranked No. 64. The NCAA’s NET rankings have the Panthers at No. 66 and the Hurricanes at No. 63.

Because this is an away game against a top-75 NET opponent, this is a Quad 1 game for the Panthers.

GAME TIME

Pitt Vs. Miami will start at 2:15 p.m.

SPREAD

Miami is favored by four points in Saturday afternoon’s game, per DraftKings Sportsbook. The over/under is set at 150.5 points. You can bet Pitt money line at +154 or Miami ML at -185.

TV

You can find Saturday’s game on The CW and on the radio on 93.7 The Fan. Tom Werme and Mike Gminski will be on the call for The CW.