ACC player of the year Shenise Johnson admits Miami isn't thinking about Gardner-Webb, its first-round NCAA tournament opponent. The Hurricanes are focused on their own game - and on showing President Obama that he underestimated them.
Johnson looks to help third-seeded Miami to its first NCAA tournament victory in nearly two decades when it faces the 14th-seeded Runnin' Bulldogs in the Dayton Regional on Sunday.
One year after finishing last in the ACC, Miami tied Duke for the regular-season conference crown. The Hurricanes (27-4) have notched the second-most wins in program history and are in the field of 64 for the first time since 2004, but evidently haven't accomplished enough to impress the president.
Obama picked Miami to lose to sixth-seeded Oklahoma in the second round, and the Hurricanes are using it as motivation.
"It's time to prove Barack Obama wrong," sophomore forward Morgan Stroman said. "We're going to play this first game, but as soon as we play this second game, we'll give him a shout out."
Miami seems to be looking past Gardner-Webb (23-10), but history is on its side. No. 14 seeds are 0-68 in the tournament.
The Hurricanes are apparently not concerning themselves with the Runnin' Bulldogs, who are making their first NCAA tournament appearance after upsetting top-seeded Liberty in the Big South title game last Sunday.
"We're not focused on G-Webb," Johnson said. "We're focused on Miami. We don't care what they do. What we do, it's hard for everyone else to stop. So if we do what we do, and we do it great, they're going to have problems."
What the Hurricanes do is play aggressive, suffocating defense.
Miami leads the nation in forcing turnovers at 24.9 per game and is second in steals with 13.9. Stroman (3.3 a contest), Johnson (3.2) and Riquna Williams (2.8) are the top three in steals in the ACC.
The Hurricanes haven't advanced to the second round of the NCAAs since 1993. This is their fourth appearance since then.
In addition to their stingy defense, the Hurricanes are also explosive offensively, ranking sixth in the nation in scoring at 79.8 points. Williams leads the charge with an ACC-best 21.7 per game, while Johnson isn't far behind at 19.7.
That could spell trouble for a Gardner-Webb team that doesn't push the pace, as it averages 63.9 points. Senior guard Monique Hudson leads the Bulldogs with 13.6 per game, while senior guard Dominique Hudson averages 12.9.
Miami struggled to get in gear offensively its last time out, however, recording a season low in points in an 83-57 loss to North Carolina in the ACC tournament semifinals March 5. That snapped a seven-game winning streak.
The Hurricanes are eager to put that performance behind them.
"We are really into business-mode. We're ready," coach Katie Meier said. "It was a long time since we played last. We didn't like the way we played, so we're ready to play well."
