National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Miami - Florida 54, Georgia Tech 36
When: 9:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 8, 2012
Where: Philips Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
Officials: # Ray Natalli, # Tim Nestor, # Ramie Styons
Attendance: 19520

Miami 54, Georgia Tech 36: Freshman Shane Larkin had 12 points, and the Hurricanes kept their NCAA tournament hopes alive by scoring 18 straight points in the second half against the short-handed Yellow Jackets in the first round of the ACC tournament.

Durand Scott scored 11 points and Rion Brown added 10 for the sixth-seeded Hurricanes (19-11), who advance to face No. 3 seed Florida State on Friday night in the quarterfinals at Atlanta.

Miami knocked off then-No. 15 Florida State at home two weeks ago, but it will need a better effort to upset the Seminoles again. The Hurricanes sleepwalked through the first 20-plus minutes before pulling away to beat the 11th-seeded Yellow Jackets (11-20) for the eighth time in 10 tries.

Georgia Tech led 20-19 at halftime and 27-24 six minutes into the second half. But Brown hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Larkin had a pair of breakaway layups during the 18-0 spurt, which gave Miami a 42-27 lead with 8:39 to play.

Mfon Udofia scored 13 points for the Yellow Jackets, who committed 20 turnovers and were held to their lowest point total of the season. Georgia Tech played a six straight game without suspended leading scorer and rebounder, Glen Rice Jr.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Hurricanes had just one assist in the first half. … Larkin’s father, Hall of Fame shortstop Barry Larkin, was in attendance. … The 39 combined points tied the mark for the lowest-scoring first half in an ACC game this season.
Top Game Performances
 
Georgia Tech   Miami - Florida
Mfon Udofia 13 Scoring Shane Larkin 12
Daniel Miller 2 Assists Shane Larkin 3
Daniel Miller 10 Rebounds Reggie Johnson 9
Brandon Reed 2 Free Throws Made Shane Larkin 6
Nick Foreman 1 Steals Kenny Kadji 3
Daniel Miller 5 Blocks Kenny Kadji 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Georgia Tech 36 31.8 3-16 5-9 6 28 5 3 20
Miami - Florida 54 33.3 3-18 15-19 5 32 2 11 11