Up Close With Nijel Pack: Miami Hurricanes guard looking to help team get back to Final Four ... "I want to bring it back this year"
The Miami Hurricanes basketball season tips off Nov. 4 against Fairleigh Dickenson, and the first conference game is Dec. 7 against Clemson. CaneSport will have you fully covered throughout the season as Miami looks to return to the NCAA Tournament after a disappointing 15-17 finish last year (6-14 in ACC play). It’s a totally revamped roster from that group, with Matthew Cleveland (13.7 PPG, 6.1 RPG) and Nijel Pack (13.3 PPG, 3.5 APG) the returning starters. Coach Jim Larranaga has added 10 new faces this year, including six transfers and four freshmen.
Miami was picked to finish sixth in the ACC preseason poll, trailing No. 1 Duke (956 points), North Carolina (924), Wake Forest (800), Clemson (765) and Virginia (743). The Canes are also among “others receiving votes” in the AP preseason poll, still ranking as the fourth-highest ACC team at No. 38. That’s behind Duke at No. 7, North Carolina No. 9 and in “others receiving votes” Wake Forest is 30th with Clemson 40th and Louisville 46th.
As we kick off your 2024-25 season coverage, today we have your CaneSport TV preseason update with Pack.
UP CLOSE WITH MATTHEW CLEVELAND … UP CLOSE WITH LYNN KIDD … UP CLOSE WITH JALIL BETHEA
He arrived at Miami two years ago as a touted transfer from Kansas State, and in Year 1 at UM he averaged 13.6 points and 2.3 assists in helping Miami to its first-ever Final Four berth.
“Everybody brings that (NCAA run) up,” said Pack, who bulked up this offseason to be stronger and avoid some of his past injury issues. “(That was) a couple of years back – I want to bring it back this year. We have a lot of seniors, this is their last chance, a lot of them haven’t played in the Tournament before. I want to make it special for our seniors.”
Pack says trying to get back to that long run at the end of the season keeps driving him, and with a team full of new faces he says “I’m trying to teach these guys, show them the Miami way.”
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The talented freshmen are headlined by 5-star Jalil Bethea, who is showing they can help out right away, and Pack stresses that it’s been “really, really competitive” in practices.
“Coach L (Jim Larranaga) has stepped it up with the emphasis on playing defense, playing together,” Pack said. “The guys returning, we are trying to show that leadership.”
The team struggled on defense last year, and Pack said UM’s improved in that area.
“We’re working on principles, different things like that, continue to get better,” Pack said. “Even that Final Four team, we gave up 100 points to Cornell, and the end of the season we were locking up guys pretty well. Still have some improvement to do, but we’re looking good right now.”
A final thought from Pack with the season coming up?
“Just excited – it’s a journey, long season,” he said. “The excitement is going through right now. … I have seen the competitive spirit. We have a lot of talent, which is good. We’re also working really hard.”
