vs. 
Miami Hurricanes (8-0, 0-0 ACC) at Boston College Eagles (5-2, 0-0 ACC)
Time: 3:30 EST
Date: Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009
Place: Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, Ma.
TV: FSN (DirecTV channel 678)
The Line: Boston College -3.5
Last Time Out: Boston College defeated Michigan 62-58 to move to 5-2 on the season.
Series: Boston College leads the all-time series 22-11.
Last Meeting at BC: Miami (Fla.) 69, Boston College 58 (Feb. 21, 2009)
Miami's 2008-2009 Record: 19-13 (7-9 ACC), tied 7th ACC
Probable Starters (2009-2010 statistics):
- G - Durand Scott (Fr.) - 6'3", 195 lbs., New York, N.Y. - 8.6 PPG, 5.2 RPG
G - James Dews (Sr.) - 6'4", 213 lbs., Cincinnati, Oh. - 12.6 PPG, 2.0 RPG
F - Dwayne Collins (Sr.) - 6'8", 241 lbs., Miami, Fl. - 12.9 PPG, 8.8 RPG
F - DeQuan Jones (So.) - 6'6", 219 lbs., Stone Mountain, Ga. - 6.3 PPG, 3.3 RPG
F - Cyrus McGowan (Sr.) - 6'9", 237 lbs., Brooksville, Ms. - 5.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG
About Miami (Fla):
The Hurricanes are the ACC's last standing undefeated team at 8-0. While Miami hasn't exactly played a murderer's row of opponents in the early season, the U does have a 15 point victory over South Carolina (a team the Eagles play at the end of the month) and won their ACC-Big Ten Challenge matchup against Minnesota. Like BC, Miami lost their star guard and leading scorer - Jack McClinton - to graduation. However, senior forward Dwayne Collins has stepped up for the Hurricanes, leading the team in points per game (12.9) and rebounds per game (8.8). Collins went off on the Eagles last season, leading the Canes with 13 points and 7 boards in a 77-71 win at Conte Forum. Miami also beat BC at home in a 69-58 win last season, so the Hurricanes come into this matchup with a lot of confidence. This season, Miami is averaging 78.4 points per game while giving up only 56.5 points per game.
About Boston College:
The Eagles look to keep things rolling after two big road wins over Providence and Michigan. BC will likely still be without Rakim Sanders, and both Joe Trapani (flu) and Tyler Roche (back) haven't been at full strength. The Eagles are averaging 75.6 points per game while giving up 65.7. BC is a perfect 2-0 at home this year.
In order to win this game, the Eagles will need to get good play out of their big men (Raji, Southern and Dunn) and avoid getting into foul trouble early. Players like Collins and McGowan present matchup issues for the Eagles and if our forwards get into foul trouble early, it will be tough to stick with Miami given the already thin bench.
The game will be shown on FSN. Leave your thoughts on the game in the comments section.
Go Eagles!
SBNation Game Page
TSN's Preview of the Game
The 7th Floor - SBNation's Miami Hurricanes blog