This Friday, the (1-0) UNC Greensboro Spartans will travel to Coral Gables, FL to take on the (1-0) Miami Hurricanes. Tipoff will be at 7:00 PM EST inside the Watsco Center. Both of these teams picked up a win in their first game of the season, but these two teams haven't matched up since 2012. The last time they played, Miami won 99-89.
The UNC Greensboro Spartans are coming into this one after taking down Joh. & Wales NC, 93-60. The Spartans looked great on both ends of the court, as they were making it rain on the offensive end and locking up on defense. They will need to carry that momentum over into this one if they want to challenge the Hurricanes on the road.
The Miami Hurricanes are entering this matchup after taking down Lafayette, 67-54. Miami looked great on the defensive end of the court, as they continued to contest shots near the rim and from the outside. The Hurricanes wil l look to do the same to the Spartans in this one at home.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The UNC Greensboro Spartans started their season exactly how they would have liked, as they continued to efficiently score throughout that game. According to KenPom, the Spartans have an adjusted offensive efficiency rating of 101.2, which is the 134th highest in the country. They are also scoring 93 points per game and shooting 43.8% from the floor. This is the 53rd most points scored per game and the 192nd-highest team shooting percentage from the field. Keondre Kennedy has led the way for UNCG, as he is scoring 16 points per game on 50% shooting from the field. He also snatched 11 rebounds in their first game, as the 6'6″ guard can do it all for his team. The Spartans are also shooting 29% from behind the three-point arc, as this is the 288th-lowest shooting percentage from deep in the nation. UNC Greensboro is also only shooting 66.7% from the charity stripe, as this is the 204th-lowest team free-throw shooting percentage in college basketball. They have to take advantage of these free looks at the basket if they want to efficiently score throughout this games.
On defense, the Spartans are surrendering 60 points per game and they are holding their opponents to 31.8% shooting from the floor. This is the 120th least amount of points given up per game and the 54th-lowest shooting percentage allowed. They continue to contest shots near the rim and from the outside, as they don't give their opponents many clean looks. UNCG is allowing their opponents to shoot 25% from behind the three-point arc, which is the 102nd-lowest shooting percentage allowed from deep. According to KenPom, UNCG has an adjusted defensive efficiency rating of 94.5, which is the 91st lowest in the nation. The Spartans also snatched 53 rebounds in their first game of the season, as they will have to continue to clean the glass if they want to keep their opponents from scoring any second-chance points. This was the fift h most rebounds recorded to start the season.
Injury Report: No Injuries.