Clemson, SC (Sports Network) - The No. 3 Miami-Florida Hurricanes put their perfect Atlantic Coast Conference record on the line as they visit Littlejohn Coliseum to tangle with the Clemson Tigers.
This is the first of two meetings between these schools scheduled for the 2012-13 season. Clemson holds an 11-7 all-time series edge in its rivalry against the Hurricanes.
Jim Larranaga's Hurricanes have still not lost in 2013 as they collected their 12th victory in a row on Wednesday by downing intrastate rival Florida State, 74-68, on the road. Miami's only loss in a true road test came in its second game of the season at Florida Gulf Coast in a contest Durand Scott was not in uniform. The Hurricanes became the first team since the 1974-75 Maryland Terrapins to defeat both Duke and North Carolina by 20+ points in the same season last weekend with an 87-61 rout of the Tar Heels.
Miami's success this season has been powered by a balanced attack led by Scott's 14.0 ppg. Shane Larkin is chiming in with 13.4 points, 4.3 assists and 2.1 steals per tilt, while engineering the offense from the point guard position. Kenny Kadji (13.1 ppg, 6.6 rpg), Reggie Johnson (10.0 ppg, 8.7 rpg) and Julian Gamble (6.7 ppg, 1.9 bpg) give the Hurricanes one of the best frontcourt combinations in the nation. Larkin paced Miami with 22 points and four assists at FSU as the tem shot a sizzling 63.8 percent from the floor.
The Tigers are 5-1 against Miami at Littlejohn Coliseum. Clemson owns nine wins all-time over teams ranked in the top three, including as recently as 2009 when the Tigers knocked off No. 3 Duke at home, 74-47. Brad Brownell's squad ended a three-game losing slide on Thursday as it clipped Georgia Tech, 56-53, in Atlanta to notch its first ACC road win. The victory upped Clemson to a 13-11 overall record which includes its 5-7 mark in league action.
Devin Booker is pacing Clemson this season with 12.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per tilt after he finished with 13 points and eight rebounds in the win over the Yellow Jackets. Milton Jennings added 12 points and six boards as the Tigers survived just 9-of-17 shooting at the charity stripe by converting 5- of-12 beyond the arc on the night. In addition to Booker, K.J. McDaniels (11.2 ppg) and Jennings (10.1 ppg, 6.3 rpg) also own double-digit scoring averages.
