MIAMI SHOT 13% FROM 3 & STILL BEAT PITT

Nothing about Miami vs Pitt made sense, which honestly made it the most Miami basketball game possible.

The Hurricanes opened ACC play with a 76–69 win over Pitt while shooting 4-of-22 from three, a number so ugly it deserves to be classified as a cry for help. Miami and Pitt both finished at 45% from the floor, which is hilarious because those percentages arrived by two completely different emotional journeys.

Miami started hot, then immediately forgot how basketball works. The Canes went more than six minutes without a bucket late in the first half, and Pitt responded by ripping off a 20–0 run like they were auditioning to end Miami’s season in December. Pitt closed the half on a 28–8 stretch and walked into the locker room up 43–33, while Miami walked in wondering if the rims had been secretly replaced with pool noodles.

The vibes were bad. The numbers were worse.

Then halftime happened. And instead of adjustments or inspiration, a man balanced a ladder on his mouth while standing on another ladder. No explanation. No warning. Just chaos. Honestly? It set the tone perfectly.

The second half started, Miami finally woke up, and realized, “we’re the bullies in this b***h.” Miami boasts a bigger, stronger, and more physical team.

Coach Jai Lucas felt the shift immediately.

 

“We could finally feel the building,” Lucas said. “Their energy made a big impact in the second half.”

Miami decided that enough is enough and said f**k it, let’s ball starting the half on a 13–0 run, holding Pitt scoreless for nearly six minutes. It wasn’t pretty offense. It wasn’t smooth. It was defense, rebounding, free throws, and vibes.

Exactly how this roster is designed to win when the jumper goes into witness protection.

MALIK RENEAU IS AN ALL-AMERICAN, AND THE FLOOR TOLD ON ITSELF

Last week, Coach Lucas casually dropped that Malik Reneau is an All-American caliber player. This week, Malik made sure nobody forgot it.

Because the moment Malik picked up early foul trouble, Miami lost its spine. The offense stalled. Pitt got comfortable. The game started sliding downhill.

Then Malik came back in the second half and said, nah, we’re not doing this tonight.

Reneau finished with an All-American type of performance 28 points on 8-of-13 shooting, and embarrassing his opponent while doing it (in the most humble of ways).  Meanwhile he decided to go perfect from the charity stripe (10-for-10) and became the first person to do it since Jordan Miller in 2023 (you know the Final Four season?). The Hurricanes look night and day like a different team with Malik on the floor as opposed to off of it.

Malik didn’t frame it as a takeover, though. He framed it as doing the damn job.

 

“I don’t think it’s more so take over,” Reneau said. “It’s more so just understanding what needs to be done. Because it takes all five guys to get a solid dub like this.”

Translation: stop panicking, play grown-man basketball.

Reneau said his confidence comes from trust, full stop.

 

“Just the trust from my coaching staff. The trust from the players. And just the work I put in every single day,” he said. “If coach trusts me and my guys trust me to go get one, I’m going to go get one for them.”

Miami lived in the paint all night.

The continued to bully Pitt in the paint and have their way defensively. Meanwhile, some of the supporting cast had notable games inlcuding Ernest Udeh Jr. who pulled down 10 rebounds with three steals, Shelton Henderson chipped in 10 points and eight boards, and Miami quietly flipped the possession battle when it mattered.

This was the exact kind of ugly game where having an All-American type matters. And Malik didn’t just show up. He stabilized the entire mess.

TRE DONALDSON CLOSED IT BECAUSE HE DOES THIS FOR A LIVING

When the game tightened late, Tre Donaldson took control and never blinked.

Donaldson scored 19 points, but the timing was everything. He poured in seven points during clutch time, including a massive three that pushed Miami’s lead to four, followed by two tough finishes in the paint and another jumper that officially told Pitt, “yeah, you’re done.”

“I’ve been playing college basketball for a long time. I know how to play the game,” Donaldson said. “I like close games. I’m good at closing games.”

That confidence wasn’t selfish. It was shared.

“My teammates trust me,” Donaldson said. “When they get it in my hands, I just took it. And they trust me.”

Pitt kept hanging around, which felt unfair considering they only hit 6-of-25 from three while somehow looking like snipers every time Miami needed a stop. But Miami kept stacking possessions.

Coach Lucas summed it up cleanly.

 

“Our size and our physicality down the stretch separated us.”

Miami didn’t win because the threes started falling. They didn’t. At all. Miami won because it leaned fully into who it is: big, physical, stubborn, and perfectly comfortable winning games that feel like a fever dream.

Or as Donaldson put it best, without fluff or fake humility: “Togetherness and trust.”

Miami is 1–0 in ACC play, still allergic to the three-point line, and very clearly learning how to survive games that try to spiral. This one didn’t click. Lucas admitted that.

But the Canes survived it anyway.

And sometimes, especially in this league, that’s the whole point.