A dominant second half from Malik Reneau powered the Miami Hurricanes past the Louisville Cardinals 78-73 on Thursday, sending Miami into the semifinals of the ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament.
Reneau scored 18 of his 24 points after halftime, helping Miami turn a tight defensive battle into a statement victory. Tru Washington added 17 points and Tre Donaldson chipped in 14 as the Hurricanes improved to 25-7 and advanced to face the Virginia Cavaliers in Saturday’s semifinal.
Miami also earned a measure of revenge after falling to Louisville 92-89 just five days earlier.
The opening 20 minutes were marked by physical play and tough defense from both sides. Louisville managed to take a slim 38-37 lead into halftime in a bruising half that saw three Cardinals players briefly leave the game with bloodied faces.
Ryan Conwell led Louisville with 22 points and nine rebounds, while J’Vonne Hadley added 19 for the Cardinals (24-10). Despite the strong efforts, Louisville struggled to find consistency from beyond the arc, finishing just 6 of 24 from 3-point range.
Miami seized momentum early in the second half with a swarming defensive effort that disrupted Louisville’s offense. Dante Allen ignited the run when he stole the ball and finished a fastbreak layup while drawing a foul, completing the three-point play to give the Hurricanes a 49-41 lead.
The Hurricanes’ defense forced a series of mistakes that translated into easy offense. Miami finished with 17 points off turnovers, a key difference in the game.
Louisville mounted one last push late in the game. With 1:23 remaining, Hadley stole the ball and pushed it ahead before Issac McKneely cleaned up the possession with a putback to cut Miami’s lead to just one point.
But Reneau responded with a clutch layup on the next possession to steady the Hurricanes.
Moments later, Washington delivered the play that sealed the outcome. He jumped the ensuing inbounds pass for a steal and was immediately fouled, calmly sinking both free throws to push the lead to five with under a minute to play.
Reneau added two more free throws down the stretch, and Shelton Henderson punctuated the victory with a steal and a powerful two-handed dunk in the closing seconds.
Louisville now awaits its NCAA Tournament fate after falling short of the ACC semifinals despite its national ranking.
Miami, meanwhile, moves on with momentum and will get another shot at Virginia after suffering an 86-63 loss to the Cavaliers last month. The Hurricanes will look to flip that result when the teams meet in Saturday’s ACC semifinal with a championship-game berth on the line.
