CaneSport TV: Up close with Jordan Miller as Miami Hurricanes basketball season is set to tip off
When fans think of the Miami Hurricanes this season, at the top of their minds might be playmaking 2 guard Isaiah Wong, or maybe the exciting additions of high-octane PG scorer Nijel Pack or big man transfer Norchad Omier.
Perhaps the secret weapon, if you will, is Jordan Miller.
Miller’s a guy that will do a little of everything – he can score, rebound, ball handle and play solid defense.
The fifth-year senior who transferred in last year plans to do whatever it takes to help this team succeed. Starting tonight at 7:30 p.m. vs. Lafayette at the Watsco Center.
Last season Miller seemed to get better and better as the season went along. That included 12 points, two assists, two steals and two blocks in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 triumph over No. 8/7 Auburn, plus holding Jabari Smith to 3-of-16 shooting. Then he scored 16 points on a perfect 6-of-6 in the Sweet 16 win over Iowa State, adding seven boards, two assists and two steals.
What’s he worked on most to improve since then?
“The thing I improved the most was my three-point shooting, my confidence for that,” he said. “I’ve been really working on the mental side of the game. The rest of my game have been sharpening the tools in the tool shed.”
Miller finished last year averaging 10.0 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.1 assists.
He will be a focal point of the offense, with the ball flowing through him.
“The ball will be in my hands a lot more compared to last year,” he said. “Last year I got mostly dump-offs.”
Miller also says, reflecting on the team’s loss in the Elite Eight to Kansas last year, 76-50, that “It’s been fuel to the fire. We were so close, could literally feel it, taste it almost as crazy as that sounds. But we just use that as motivation. We know what it takes and what it’s going to take to get past that hump, and this offseason is something we all focused on and making sure we can get past that hump (this) year.”
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Miller says it was “surreal” how Miami made its run in the tournament. He also says he doesn’t think the moment was too big in the loss but that “we shied away from the game plan – we knew Kansas liked to push the ball, get up and down the court and I don’t think we focused enough on that. I think that was a winnable game.”
He adds “Being there seeing the atmosphere, the fans were crazy, cameras were everywhere, it really felt bigtime,” Miller said. “It being my first time, and a lot of my teammates’ first time, we took that moment in knowing not to take it for granted. Because we had an older team last year. We were able to cherish it more instead of being a freshman and it happening and not really knowing how hard it is to get to the NCAA Tournament. Overall it was great, would love to do it again this year.”
So what does he see in this year’s team, which has back Isaiah Wong and has added key pieces with the aforementioned Pack and Omier?
“We have some freshmen, some new guys – I wouldn’t say the whole team is experienced, but we’ll be able to rely on leadership and guys like myself, Isaiah Wong who have been there to allow the team to be more comfortable, at ease, `Hey, we can do this.’”
