Connect with us

Miami, FL

Duke Blows Miami Out, 89-54

Published

on

Duke Blows Miami Out, 89-54


Remember when Miami was a team you had to take seriously? That Miami could hurt you. That Miami could float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. That was not the Miami we saw Tuesday night and frankly we miss that other Miami.

Duke beat this Miami by 35, 89-54, and it was nolo contendere, no mas, no way for the ‘Canes, and that started early.

Miami tied the game at 6-6 and then Duke took over and went on a three point binge.

Kon Knueppel hit two, then Mason Gillis hit two then Knueppel hit another. Then it was Sion James and Isaiah Evans hit a pair. By that time it was 30-15 and the game was effectively over.

Advertisement

Duke shot 8-12 on threes in the first half and finished the game 17-32 and 53.1 percent on threes is not bad.

Duke’s defense was also imposing. The Blue Devils held Miami to 6-20 on threes (30 percent) and 23-59 overall (39 percent). The ‘Canes only had eight turnovers, but that doesn’t reflect the number of pressured shots, airballs and shot clock violations that Duke pushed them into.

Lynne Kidd was the only real threat Miami had for most of the game and he did surprisingly well against Khaman Maluach, finishing with 20 points and just one rebound.

Austin Swartz got 11 points and that was about it for the ‘Canes. Jalil Bethea had seven; no one else had more than five.

No doubt a lot of people were looking for Cooper Flagg to erupt again after his 42 point game against Notre Dame but that didn’t happen. Flagg finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

Advertisement

The leading scorer was Knueppel. Playing like he wanted to make up for the end of the Notre Dame game, Knueppel finished with 25 on 9-11/6-8 shooting. He also had three assists.

Tyrese Proctor didn’t score in this one and that followed a three-point outing against the Irish. Prior to that he had 14, 13, 14 and ten in the previous four games.

Sion James finished with five points, five assists, two rebounds and three blocks, including one terrific one in the second half.

Mason Gillis was tremendous too. His role has really expanded in the last two games. He’s just playing at a much higher level.

Caleb Foster played well, scoring nine points on 3-6/2-3 from the floor. He has been working hard to get to the basket lately and that’s a nice complement to the hot outside shooting.

Advertisement

Duke used Patrick Ngongba for 18 minutes in the absence of Maliq Brown, and he showed some improvement too. He finished with four points and five rebounds and certainly didn’t hurt the team. That’s pretty good for a freshman who was pushed back by injury.

Isaiah Evans played well and aggressively, finishing with eight points and two boards.

Darren Harris got in for eight minutes and also did well. He didn’t score much – just a free throw – but he was comfortable on the court.

You’ve probably noticed that we haven’t gotten to Khaman Maluach yet and that’s because we saved the best for last.

Well, Knueppel was the best tonight. But we could certainly say Maluach was the most exciting thing about this game.

Advertisement

In the earliest games this season, Maluach was tentative. At times he was almost timid. Those days, if they’re not gone, nearly are.

Maluach is a different player. It’s not his stats though they were excellent. He had 12 points on 6-7 from the floor and 15 rebounds. Maluach was tremendous Tuesday.

What really excited us though was his alertness and confidence. There was no tentativeness. There was no uncertainty. And best of all, there were two plays in a row in the second half where he was near the basket and just took the ball straight up. First time was after a rebound and the second he just went up for a jump hook.

These were things he just didn’t do earlier. It wasn’t a question of ability. It was just a lack of confidence and experience. He’s improving with unbelievable speed.

It’s really one of the most striking things we’ve ever seen at Duke. We’ll have to think about this but who has ever improved like this this quickly?

Advertisement

With the win, Duke moves to 15-2 and the losses to Kentucky, by five, and Kansas, by three, don’t seem as concerning.

Next up for the Blue Devils is a trip to Boston College Saturday, then three straight Tobacco Road opponents – at Wake Forest, then NC State and UNC at home.

Poll

Player of the Game vs. Miami

  • 0%
    Patrick Ngongba

    (0 votes)

  • 0%
    Cameron Sheffield

    (0 votes)



30 votes total

Vote Now



Source link

Miami, FL

Pair arrested in connection with armed home invasion robbery in Miami, cops say

Published

on

Pair arrested in connection with armed home invasion robbery in Miami, cops say


MIAMI — Two men have been arrested in connection with an armed home invasion robbery in Miami last month in which investigators say masked suspects entered a home, pointed a gun at a victim and repeatedly demanded money before searching the residence.

Leer en español

Miami police identified the suspects as 25-year-old Earl Gerry Baldwin and 21-year-old Zakis Kawone James, both of Miami-Dade.

According to arrest reports, officers responded to the home on April 4 after the victim reported that two masked men had entered the residence and robbed him at gunpoint.

Advertisement

The report states that he victim told investigators he was in the kitchen when two men wearing ski masks entered through an unlocked front door.

Police said shortly after, one of the intruders allegedly pointed a handgun at the victim and demanded cash, repeatedly asking, “Where’s the money?” as the two men searched the home.

Investigators said the gunman took the victim’s iPhone 16 Pro Max while both suspects searched bedrooms for money. The victim told police the suspects also asked about his younger brother before continuing their search.

According to the reports, the gunman kept the victim at gunpoint while the other suspect ransacked rooms throughout the home. After failing to find any money, the men left the victim inside his mother’s bedroom, closed the door and fled, investigators said.

Authorities said the victim then ran to a neighbor’s home and called police.

Advertisement

Detectives said surveillance footage obtained from nearby locations showed a silver Chevrolet Trailblazer parked near the home before the robbery.

According to the reports, video showed two suspects exiting the SUV and walking toward the residence before entering the home. Minutes later, the pair were seen running from the property and getting back into the vehicle, which drove away.

Investigators said license plate reader data identified the SUV and showed it traveling through Miami shortly after the robbery. Historical reader data and GPS records linked the vehicle to a residence in the 700 block of Northwest 65th Street, according to the reports.

Detectives said additional surveillance footage later captured Baldwin inside the SUV while wearing clothing matching what was seen during the robbery.

Investigators said they also identified him during a separate contact on May 15 and later obtained cellphone records and location data that allegedly placed his phone in the area of the robbery and traveling with the SUV before and after the crime.

Advertisement

According to James’ arrest report, detectives identified him through surveillance footage, a resident database search and facial recognition software.

Investigators also obtained surveillance footage showing James making a purchase at a Walmart in Miami Gardens after the robbery using a debit card in his name, the report states.

Police said cellphone data associated with James’ phone also placed him at the robbery scene and traveling with the SUV throughout the day.

On Thursday, detectives executed a search warrant at the Northwest 65th Street residence and took both men into custody, according to the reports.

Baldwin was transported to the Miami Police Department’s robbery office, where he was advised of his Miranda rights and invoked them, according to his arrest report.

Advertisement

James waived his Miranda rights and provided a statement to detectives, according to his arrest report. Details of the statement were redacted from the publicly released report.

Jail records show both men are each facing one count of armed robbery with home invasion.

As of Friday, both were being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, where their bonds were listed as “to be set.”

Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.

Advertisement





Source link

Continue Reading

Miami, FL

Ex-Miami Heat player Terry Rozier facing additional bribery charges in sports gambling sting

Published

on

Ex-Miami Heat player Terry Rozier facing additional bribery charges in sports gambling sting


Federal prosecutors have indicted ex-Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier on additional charges in connection with a sports gambling sting, alleging he took a hefty bribe to exit a game early in March 2023.

Rozier, 32, was charged Thursday in a superseding indictment in Brooklyn federal court with bribery in sporting contests and honest services wire fraud conspiracy. Superseding indictments are used when prosecutors want to change or add new charges to an existing criminal case.

Rozier has denied participating in the gambling scheme, and has been fighting to have the case dismissed after pleading not guilty to wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy charges in December. His attorneys argue in part that the government’s theory of the case — that he prevented sportsbooks from making informed decisions about accepting certain bets — runs afoul of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that narrowed the federal wire fraud statute.

The new indictment “just confirms that our motion to dismiss was righteous — new charges, new theories, but all just an effort to make something stick,” Rozier’s attorney, Jim Trusty, wrote in an email to The Associated Press.

Advertisement

Rozier was arrested in October along with former NBA player Damon Jones, who pleaded guilty last month for his role in schemes to defraud major sportsbooks including DraftKings and FanDuel. Others charged in the case include sports bettor and influencer Marves Fairley, who pleaded guilty Thursday to conspiracy, bribery and other federal charges in connection with gambling schemes targeting basketball games in the U.S. and China.

Rozier remains free on $3 million bond. The case has kept him off the court this season.

The new indictment alleges that Rozier not only defrauded sportsbooks, but also the NBA and the team he was playing for at the time, the Charlotte Hornets.

Rozier is accused of conspiring with gamblers to leave a game early, citing a lingering lower leg injury, so they could cash in on more than $250,000 in bets that his points, assists and other totals would be lower than what the sportsbooks had set as betting lines.

Not all of the bets were successful because Rozier collected four rebounds, which was more than the betting line, the superseding indictment said. As a result, after the game, Rozier and his co-conspirators negotiated a discount on his bribe, cutting it from $100,000 to about $70,000, the superseding indictment said.

Advertisement

The new indictment against Rozier was filed within hours of the guilty pleas by Fairley, who goes by the name “Vezino Locks” on Instagram. As part of his plea, Fairley admitted to prosecutors’ allegations that he used insider information to get an edge when betting on NBA, NCAA and Chinese Professional Basketball League games — including paying Rozier’s longtime friend $100,000 in exchange for a tip that Rozier was going to leave a game early.”

Fairley’s attorney Eric Siegle said his client “deeply regrets and is ashamed of his conduct.”

“By publicly acknowledging his guilt and conduct today, Marves is taking the first step toward atoning for his wrongful conduct and to starting his ‘second half’ on the right foot,” Siegle said. ____ Associated Press reporter Michael R. Sisak contributed from New York. Boone reported from Boise, Idaho.



Source link

Continue Reading

Miami, FL

Miami’s Jai Lucas Tackles Year Two With A New Roster and New Goal

Published

on

Miami’s Jai Lucas Tackles Year Two With A New Roster and New Goal


One good season can set the standard of what the Miami Hurricanes can be for the future under Jai Lucas.

Lucas nearly broke many single-season records as a first-year head coach, but that didn’t stop him from learning from mistakes that could have helped him improve the following season. However, he has three returning players, so it is a brand new team for the upstart head coach.

Yeah, for me it’s like coaching a whole new team,” Lucas said on an appearance on the “Hoops HQ” basketball podcast. “I think something that goes into the past is you have something that fits, and you just try to rinse and repeat. That’s kind of how a lot of programs are built. But now with this portal era, you don’t know what you’re going to get every year. My team looks completely different than before, so I had to build it differently.”

Advertisement

Lucas dove into some of his transfer targets and why they fit well with the Canes, starting with his new star point guard, Acaden Lewis.

Advertisement

“It started with being able to get a really good point guard,” Lucas said. “We had one last year in Tre Donaldson, and that’s where Acaden came into play. Having somebody you feel can run the team, but also has the ability to take over games. Watching his stuff in the portal and doing the analytics, he’s one of the best point guards in the country pound for pound with what he’s able to do and how he’s able to create.

“Like I talked about earlier, we had a prior relationship that went back to when I was at Duke and we recruited him there. So it was kind of an easy recruitment once the portal opened and I was able to talk to him.”

Lewis is complemented with the Canes new star defensive anchor Somto Cyril.

Advertisement

Mar 3, 2026; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs center Somto Cyril (2) on the court against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Stegeman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

“Then I wanted a big, and that’s where Somto came in,” Lucas continued. “He played for a coach who is on staff now, Eric Pastrana, at Georgia, so that was kind of the relationship built there.

However, the biggest missing link from last season was shooting and depth. Lucas got that and loves how his team feels and looks heading into the summer.

“Once we got those two pieces along with Shelton and Dante, who we had coming back, the one thing I knew we missed last year and needed this year was shooting. That’s where Nick Dorn, Brent Bland, DeShawn Goode, and some of these other guys who will be high level complementary pieces came into play with our foundational pieces like Acaden, Shelton, Dante, Somto, those guys.

Advertisement

“Then we wanted to get more depth than we had last year where we played about six or seven. I wanted to be able to play eight plus, maybe nine this year. So we focused on that, focused on the shooting, but also wanted to have size. Nick’s size at 6 foot 7 and his ability to shoot, and what he did at Elon and then having it transfer over to what he was able to do in a Power Five conference, I felt was a fit for what we want to do here.”


Advertisement

Follow all social media platforms to stay up to date with everything Miami Hurricanes- TwitterFacebookInstagramYoutube,and BlueSky.

Read More Miami Hurricanes News:

Add us as a preferred source on Google





Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending