Scott fires 32 points, carries No. 9 Miami (FL) to ACC title game

Greensboro, NC, United States (4E Sports) – Durand Scott fired a career-best 32 points to carry No. 9 Miami (FL) to an 81-71 win over North Carolina State and a spot in the championship game of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Tournament Saturday at Greensboro Coliseum.

The Hurricanes, who captured the ACC regular-season title with a 15-3 mark, advanced to the championship game for the first time and will take on the winner of the North Carolina-Maryland tussle.

Scott shot 12-for-16 from the field, five from beyond the arc, Shane Larkin contributed 23 points and nine boards and Julian Gamble added 10 markers for the Hurricanes (26-6).

Kenny Kadji chipped in eight points and nine of the Hurricanes’ 35 rebounds, 10 more than the Wolfpack (24-10).

Scott Wood scored 21 points, including six triples, while CJ Leslie and TJ Warren added 14 and 13 points, respectively, for the Wolfpack, who lost in the ACC semifinal for the second straight year.

The Wolfpack shot 50 percent from the floor compared to just 45.6 percent by the Hurricanes but went behind early in the first half by 19 points and never recovered.

Scott scored seven straight points early in the first half to put the Hurricanes ahead, 14-5, with 10:57 remaining.

Later, two foul shots by Kadji and a three-pointer by Scott gave the Hurricanes a 26-13 advantage.

The Wolfpack came within 26-16 but the Hurricanes answered with a 13-4 blast to take their biggest lead of the game at 39-20.

In the second half, Wood buried a triple to cut the lead to 50-44 before the Hurricanes retaliated with an 8-1 burst to take a 58-45 lead and were never threatened from there.

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