Miami @ Wake Forest preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 12, 2019 ) Wake Forest 65, Miami-Florida 76

Miami is aiming for a season sweep when it visits Wake Forest after the Hurricanes came away with a 76-65 triumph in the first meeting on Jan. 12 in Coral Gables. The good news for the Demon Deacons is the teams are facing off on a Tuesday, as they are 3-2 in ACC action on that day compared with 0-9 on the other days.

For Miami, the biggest obstacle may be the setting as the Hurricanes have yet to win a single game on the road (0-7), averaging 64.4 points in the seven losses while allowing 75.4. Wake Forest knows all about those woes as the Demon Deacons finally earned their first road victory a week ago, defeating Notre Dame 75-68 before falling at North Carolina State 94-74 Sunday. The Hurricanes, however, are playing their best basketball since the conference season began, winning three of their last five, with one of the losses in overtime at North Carolina, after opening ACC play with a 1-8 mark. "I think it starts with practice," junior guard DJ Vasiljevic told reporters. "We are having a lot of fun in practice and as you can see, it is translating to the games. We are just having fun and we are just playing for one another. We've only got seven guys, so we have nothing to lose and we are just going out there and fighting."

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Regional Sports Network

ABOUT MIAMI (12-14, 4-10 ACC): Sophomore guard Chris Lykes is ninth in the ACC in scoring (16.6) and one of his nine 20-point games came in the win over Wake Forest, when he notched 25 points, including a perfect 14-for-14 from the free-throw line. Vasiljevic topped Miami with 21 points in the team's most recent outing, an 80-65 triumph over Georgia Tech, as he hit five 3-pointers, one more than he had against Wake Forest. The Hurricanes had 20 assists against Georgia Tech, second most all season, as the team benefited from Anthony Lawrence getting more playing time at point as he came one assist short of a triple-double with 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.

ABOUT WAKE FOREST (10-16, 3-11): Junior guard Brandon Childress tops the Demon Deacons in scoring (14.7 ppg) after he registered 15 points against N.C. State, but the Hurricanes held him in check in the earlier meeting as he went 2-of-12 from the floor, including 2-of-9 from 3-point range. Sophomore guard Chaundee Brown (11.1 ppg) picked up the slack with a career-best 22 points against Miami, while freshman forward Jaylen Hoard (13.8 ppg, 8.0 rpg) continues to be a threat as a scorer and rebounder with six double-doubles this season. Wake Forest is hitting just 30.5 percent of its shots from downtown, on pace for the lowest in team history (30.8 percent, 2009-10).

TIP-INS

1. Wake Forest owns a one-game advantage (11-10) in this series and the home team has won the last eight meetings.

2. Miami finishes the regular season with three of its last four games on the road.

3. The Demon Deacons top the ACC in offensive rebounds (14.29 per game).

PREDICTION: Wake Forest 70, Miami 68