Spiders take aim at Hurricanes, NIT semifinals

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Going where no Spiders have gone before ? to the NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden ? would distinguish this University of Richmond team, particularly because it was 13-12 on Valentine?s Day after losing at George Mason, which finished 9-22.

This is Richmond?s eighth appearance in the NIT and the second time the Spiders have reached the quarterfinals. Syracuse won 62-46 at the Robins Center in the 2002 NIT, earning a spot in the semifinals. Miami (23-12) visits UR (21-13) tonight in the quarterfinals.
The only game Richmond has dropped among its past nine was a 70-67 loss in the A-10 quarterfinals to VCU, which captured the league tournament championship with a four-game sweep in Brooklyn, N.Y. The Spiders rebounded with NIT wins over St. Francis Brooklyn and Arizona State, whose season concluded with a 76-70 overtime loss at the Robins Center on Sunday night.

?I thought we were playing unbelievable basketball heading into that game against VCU in Brooklyn. They were on a run. They played their best basketball in Brooklyn,? said UR forward T.J. Cline, who scored 19 points and added four assists and two blocks against the Sun Devils. ?So, it was two good teams going at it.?

Richmond enters this quarterfinal with less rest than Miami, which beat Alabama early Saturday in a second-round game. But the Hurricanes, seeded second in Richmond?s region behind the Spiders, must travel and face an opponent with an uncommon system comprised of a matchup defense and a spread offense.

?They?re a difficult team to prepare for. They have a very unique style of play, one that we didn?t face all season,? Arizona State coach Herb Sendek said of the Spiders.

Richmond led the Sun Devils 14-4 before ASU acclimated. UR pulled out a close game, which has been its recent habit.
The Spiders were 4-10 in games decided by six or fewer points following that Feb. 14 loss at George Mason. Since, they are 4-1 when that standard is applied.
?We had all these close games that prepared us for the end and now we?re really hitting our stride and everybody has a lot of confidence,? Cline said.

Guard Kendall Anthony, 5-foot-8, scored 10 of Richmond first 21 points against ASU, and seven of the Spiders? 16 overtime points.
?Just trying to be aggressive. Just come out ready to play and make sure to get my teammates ready,? said Anthony, who scored 21 Sunday.
?I know if I?m aggressive, then it triggers over to the team, so everybody gets aggressive.?
Among UR?s goals is extending the career of Anthony, the team?s lone scholarship senior and the fourth-leading scorer in school history.
?He has given this program so much. We?re giving it back to him,? Cline said.


Miami will come at UR with height the Spiders haven?t encountered this season.

The Hurricanes start 7-0, 244-pound junior Tonye Jekiri, who led the ACC in rebounding (10.1 rpg), and 6-10, 237-pound junior Ivan Cruz Uceda.

?When you play teams at this level, it?s a little taller, a little faster, and a little stronger,? UR coach Chris Mooney said.
Arizona State outrebounded Richmond 46-30, collected 15 offensive boards and scored 13 second-chance points.

Miami?s fourth-year coach is Jim Larranaga, who directed George Mason to five NCAA tournaments (2006 Final Four) in 14 seasons before moving to the ACC.

--Richmond Dispatch

 

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UM team to face Richmond with sights on trip to Madison Square Garden



Once they realized their NCAA Tournament dream was shattered, University of Miami basketball players set their sights on Madison Square Garden. That is where the semifinals and championship of the National Invitation Tournament are being held, and the Hurricanes are one win away from getting there.

The second-seeded Canes (23-12) are on the road to play the No. 1-seeded Richmond Spiders (21-13) Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Robins Center in the NIT quarterfinals. The team is in great spirits, according to UM coach Jim Larra?aga.

The only bad news is that point guard Angel Rodriguez (injured wrist) ?is not likely to be in uniform,? Larra?aga said. He traveled with the team but did not practice Monday. Manu Lecomte will likely start in his place.

Miami had just one day to prepare for the Spiders, who present an unusual challenge because they play a matchup-zone defense and the Princeton offense, which features constant motion, perimeter shooting and backdoor cuts. Richmond coach Chris Mooney played at Princeton.

?At this time of year, one day is what you get [to prepare], so it?s very difficult,? Larra?aga said. ?Richmond is a very, very good team.?

The team is motivated to be among the final four NIT teams standing.

?Everybody still alive in the NIT has the same goal ? to get to Madison Square Garden,? Larra?aga said. ?By this weekend there will be just 24 teams left playing ? 16 in the NCAA and eight in the NIT. Everyone wants to be one of those teams.?

The Hurricanes are particularly excited about the idea of playing at the Garden because so many team members have connections to the Northeast. Larra?aga and assistants Chris Caputo and Michael Huger are from New York, Davon Reed is from New Jersey, Ja?Quan Newton is from Philadelphia, and James Palmer is from Washington.

Miami is coming off a win over Alabama. Richmond beat Arizona State 76-70 in overtime. In that game, senior Kendall Anthony scored 21 points, Terry Allen had 17, T.J. Cline had 19, and Shawn Dre Jones had 15 off the bench (6-of-7 shooting). The Spiders have won a school-record 16 home games this season and are playing their best basketball in the postseason.

Richmond was 13-12 on Valentine?s Day, and nobody expected much. But it has gone on to lose just one game in the past nine, a 70-67 loss to VCU in the Atlantic 10 conference quarterfinals. Even taller teams such as ASU have had trouble with the Spiders. They outrebounded Richmond 46-30 and still lost.



Seeds/records: No. 2 Miami 23-12; No. 1. Richmond 21-13.

Noteworthy: Both teams are playing well of late. The Hurricanes have won five of their past six. The Spiders have won eight of nine. ? Richmond has won 16 home games this season and last made the NIT quarterfinals in 2002. ?

--Miami Herald