Jim Larranaga exits press conference after single question following Virginia loss

Miami did not have the best display on Monday night, only scoring 38 points — the lowest in the program’s ACC history — against Virginia. It’s another loss for head coach Jim Larranaga, adding to what has been a disappointing season in Coral Gables. The Hurricanes are 6-6 in ACC play and most likely on the outside looking in from an NCAA Tournament standpoint.

Larranaga had a short and simple press conference following the Virginia loss, taking some time to apologize to the fans for his team’s play. However, he did not take too many questions from the media and exited after giving a two-word answer.

“Jim Larranaga has become as apoplectic about his team’s recent play as Canes fans,” On3’s CaneSport said via X. “He was asked what changed after the Canes got the early lead, he said ‘the game’ and promptly left the postgame press conference.”

Miami shot under 30% from the floor against Virginia, making 14 of 49 shots. Two of the makes were three pointers but there were 20 attempts. Just a horrific shooting night for the Hurricanes, having a rough go of it from the offensive end.

This was not the first occurrence of Larranaga showing his frustration on Monday. Even during the game, the Miami head coach was visibly upset. During a timeout, instead of going into the huddle to speak, he sat on the bench, with a photo showing him staring into space.

Not everybody loved the move, with ESPN’s Seth Greenberg criticizing the head coach. He understands Miami is struggling at the moment and Larranaga wants to see better results. But Greenberg does not believe that Larranaga’s in-game move was the right one.

“I mean, look, he’s embarrassed by the way they played and he’s disappointed in the way they played,” said Greenberg. “Right now, maybe he doesn’t feel like he’s reaching them, but that’s not the way to reach them.

“Now, I don’t know. Maybe Jim was under the weather; we don’t know that.”

The road for Miami is not going to get any easier. Next on the schedule are the North Carolina Tar Heels, one of the best teams in the country. Hubert Davis will bring his team down in hopes of extending their lead at the top of the ACC.

Larranaga will just be hoping his team can get back on the right track. Something is clearly not working at the moment, with emotions spilling into the game.