CORAL GABLES -- Miami coach Jai Lucas had just secured the biggest win in his UM tenure and walked over to shake UNC coach Hubert Davis' hand.
Behind him, the Hurricanes fans who filled the Watsco Center stormed onto the court to celebrate Miami's 75-66 win over No. 11 North Carolina. It was the first ranked win for the Hurricanes since Lucas took over the program, as well as the first ranked win for UM since they beat Clemson on Jan. 3, 2024. The victory shows a sharp change of fortune following UM's seven-win season last year.
"I think (the team is) resilient and I feel like they've shown that all season," Lucas said. "All the close games that we've been in -- the Pitt game, we were down and had to come back. Wake Forest. I think about all these games on the road where we're battling, competing, and to finally get one over a ranked opponent -- I think it's our fourth one we've played -- to finally get one over a ranked opponent feels good."
Lucas and his players credited the fans for helping create a tough environment for the visiting Tar Heels. UM announced student tickets sold out on Monday, and the announced attendance was 7,355 -- Miami's highest-attended home game this season.
"I thought the student section was electric," Lucas said. "This is what I envisioned this building being and what we have to make it moving forward."
"The fans are everything," Miami center Ernest Udeh Jr. said. "You hear them screaming, whether it (is) the first bucket, the last bucket, we get a stop, a turnover, making a free throw -- all of it plays into our success on the court. So we're always grateful for that."
In addition to building enthusiasm for this year's team, the win also builds Miami's NCAA Tournament resume. It is another Quad 1 victory for the Hurricanes, who are 3-3 against Quad 1 opponents. UM is now 36th in the NET rankings, which ranks eighth in the ACC. Miami has four upcoming games against conference opponents currently ranked ahead of them in the NET rankings.
The victory earned the Hurricanes national attention from college basketball analysts. ESPN's Dick Vitale called Miami the "team of the night" and said Lucas is a "rising star." CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein said he believed the Hurricanes are a tournament team.
Lucas said he hopes Tuesday's win over UNC can help vault the Hurricanes into another gear in the final month of the regular season.
"Hopefully the guys feel like they got over a hump a little bit, a quality win or whatever -- a resume-(builder)," Lucas said. "But like I was saying, we have six more Quad 1 games on the schedule. So it's not like the schedule gets any easier."
Lucas also made sure to note that while the victory over the Tar Heels was a big step for the team, they still have tough opponents to play. Miami has two games against ranked opponents -- a road game against No. 15 Virginia on Feb. 21 and a home game in the season finale against No. 24 Louisville -- but there are also tough games against N.C. State, SMU and Virginia Tech coming up.
"It's not over," Lucas said. "This ain't the championship or anything, but this, hopefully, will get us down this stretch because we got a tough stretch coming up."