Miami Hurricanes to skeptics on eve of NCAA opener vs. Drake Friday: “Don’t pick us”

“Don’t pick us. Sincerely, Miami.”

That is the Miami Hurricanes’ playful, unofficial slogan heading into their NCAA Tournament opener against Drake on Friday night.

The Canes arrived at MVP Arena as a No. 5 seed, two weeks removed from being crowned ACC regular season champions, and a year since making an Elite Eight run. Yet, plenty of skeptics remain. An ankle injury to forward Norchad Omier last week added fuel for the prognosticators picking Drake to pull the upset.

Fine, say the Hurricanes. They are fueled by doubters.

The team, outfitted in tropical flowered practice shorts, looked confident and loose during its open training session on Thursday. The sight of Omier shooting, dunking, and seemingly moving well provided an emotional lift, though coach Jim Larranaga said Omier’s game status remains unknown.

Miami held a private practice at Siena College after the open training, during which Omier was being further evaluated. He wants to play but has to be cleared by the medical staff.

“His impact is always huge, he’s got to biggest personality and energy on and off the court,” the coach said of Omier. “We’re going to put him through a workout and see how he does. If he’s good, we’re good. If he’s not, we’ll know it and make the adjustment.”

With or without Omier, the Canes are hungry to advance at least until the second weekend of the tournament. The winner of the Miami-Drake game plays the winner of Indiana vs. Kent State on Sunday.

“I feel like we’re still the underdog and still have to earn respect this March,” said ACC Player of the Year Isaiah Wong. “With all we’ve been through this season, they’ve still got us losing some games.”

Guard Jordan Miller added: “University of Miami is really big on football. They’ve won national championships. To put your school as a quote, unquote, basketball school, you have to come with those same accolades. To put Miami on the map officially, we have to win a national championship.”

The first hurdle is Drake, the Missouri Valley Conference champions, who have won at least 25 games three seasons in a row and lost just one of their last 14 this season.

The Bulldogs are led by 6-7 sophomore Tucker DeVries, a sharpshooter who turned down several big schools to play for his father, Drake coach Darian DeVries. The younger DeVries averages 22 points and six rebounds, and was the MVC Player of the Year.

“The thing about DeVries is he can do everything,” Larranaga said. “He can shoot the three, put the ball on the ground and drive it. He can post you up. He’s an outstanding passer. He can use ball screens, but can also be the ball screener. The guy is an NBA talent, and we know he’s going to be a hard cover for us.”

Another key to Drake’s success is 25-year-old point guard Roman Penn, the school’s all-time assists leader. He averages 16 points and 6.6 assists and set a school record with 18 assists at Evansville, second best in the NCAA this season.

Penn played one season at Siena before transferring to Drake, and feels right at home at MVP Arena, where Siena plays its home games.

“It feels great to be back in Albany,” Penn said. “I guess it’s a little advantage being here in the arena. It’s been a long time, but I’m just super excited to be back in this area.”

Though Drake is a trendy upset pick, the Bulldogs are taking the Hurricanes seriously.

“They didn’t come in first place for no reason, and they don’t have the player of the year for no reason,” Penn said. “They’re a great team and we’ve got to be ready to play.”

Asked about the coaching matchup against Larranaga, DeVries smiled and replied: “I’m like 700 wins behind him. I have tremendous respect for him and his career, specifically what he’s done with Miami and the year they’ve had. A lot of respect for his longevity.”

Larranaga needs no reminders of how dangerous MVC teams can be. His George Mason team played two tough games against Wichita State 2006 and lost by 22 to Creighton.

Most memorable of all, his 2018 Miami team had its heart broken in the first round of the NCAA Tournament with a buzzer beater by 11th seed Loyola Chicago as 98-year-old Loyola chaplain Sister Jean prayed from her courtside wheelchair.

“We made that game very memorable for Sister Jean,” Larranaga said. “To this day, that drives me nuts because we got beat on a buzzer beater. We have the upmost respect for the Missouri Valley Conference, it’s a basketball league. They don’t really devote energy to football. Their basketball teams draw great crowds and Drake right now is really on a roll. Coach DeVries has done a great job.”

As Furman has already shown with a first-round upset of Virginia on Thursday, there is no way to predict what will happen between Miami and Drake Friday night (7:25 p.m., TBS). “March is just about can you hit shots and can you get stops,” Miller said. “They call it March Madness for a reason.”