Winds of change

Second-seeded Hurricanes in hoops, not football, heaven

Posted: Sunday March 07, 1999 08:03 PM

Tim James, who shared Big East Player of the Year honors, already has had his number retired. AP

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (CNN/SI) -- It used to be that University of Miami athletics meant football, first and foremost. This year, the winds of change have swept through Hurricane Country.

For 15 years from 1971-1985, the University of Miami didn't even have a men's basketball program; it had been shut down as an unnecessary financial liability. Five years after being reinstated, the Hurricanes joined the Big East and have been battling for respectability ever since. They may finally have earned it, and more.

Suddenly, the once-not-ready-for-prime-time basketball program is getting cozy in the college hoops spotlight.

"We were most definitely a football-dominated school in the past, with all the national championships," Miami junior forward Mario Bland said. "But now I think we're starting to put basketball in the prime light in South Florida. A lot of people didn't think we were really that good, but after this season, I think we've opened a lot of people's eyes."

It was only five seasons ago that the Hurricanes went 0-18 in the Big East. But a second-place finish in the conference this year capped a season of firsts that put the past to rest.

Miami claimed its first road wins ever at West Virginia and Syracuse, its first win in Madison Square Garden, knocking off St. John's, and its first win in Storrs against a UConn team ranked second in the nation at the time.

"I think with each step, people start noticing more and more," said Hurricanes coach Leonard Hamilton, who led Miami to a 15-3 regular-season conference mark. "But we're not playing to be noticed. What we're doing is playing to prove to ourselves that we're a good basketball team."

If finishing the regular season ranked ninth nationally wasn't proof enough, the Hurricanes have some hardware to argue their case.

Hamilton won his second Big East Coach of the Year Award. Junior swingman Johnny Hemsley was named the league's Most Improved Player, and senior forward Tim James shared Player of the Year honors with Connecticut's Richard Hamilton.

Coach Leonard Hamilton, Big East Coach of the Year, built the Miami program from the ground up. AP

James, a Miami native, has had such a positive impact on the program, the school retired his jersey, an honor previously bestowed only on Rick Barry.

"I think I put up enough numbers to be recognized as one of the top players in the country," said James, who was third in the Big East in scoring and rebounding. "But I also want to be recognized as a good person because I really think that goes a long way."

The 6-foot-7 senior averaged 18.9 points and 8.3 rebounds and became just the seventh player in Big East history to have 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in conference play.

But James has meant more to the Hurricanes than just his on-court production.

"Most of the time, you give people recognition because they accomplished good things on the basketball court from a statistical standpoint," Hamilton said. "He's been a tremendous leader for us, and I think that deserves as much recognition as statistical accomplishments."

The 'Canes are grateful for the unprecedented awards and attention. But they would prefer to be remembered for what they hope will be an extended postseason run.

After a 62-59 loss to St. John's in the semifinals of the Big East Tournament, the Hurricanes find themselves in . And if their third trip to the NCAA Tournament lasts beyond the first round for the very first time, it could leave an undeniable message that this program has finally arrived.

"We're just happy to get our program back on a roll," Hemsley said. "We've done some great things this year, but we're just getting started and everybody understands that."

Ten years ago, an upstart Big East team roared through the tournament all the way to the championship game. Miami's quest to pull off the kind of miracle run that Seton Hall enjoyed begins when the second-seeded Hurricanes play Lafayette in the East Region.

They likely will have to get through Duke and Cincinnati if they are to head to St. Petersburg with a chance to take a title in their home state.

"We want to make sure we wait until the end of the season, and then we'll evaluate what we've been able to accomplish," Hamilton said. "And when we'll make the decision whether or not we feel that we've reached our potential."

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