The University of Miami men’s basketball team took down second-seed and top-10-ranked Auburn, 79-61, Sunday night to earn the fourth Sweet 16 berth in program history.
No. 10-seeded Miami (25-10, 14-6 ACC) led the Tigers, ranked No. 8/7, from start to finish at Bon Secours Wellness Arena, holding the advantage for 39-plus minutes in a spectacular display at both ends of the floor.
Third-year sophomore guard Isaiah Wong scored a game-high 21 points for the Hurricanes, who are headed to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the last decade.
“I can’t be happier for my guys. They did such a fantastic job of executing the game plan,” Miami head coach Jim Larrañaga said after leading his team to the Sweet 16 for the third time in his 11-year tenure. “We just kept plugging away. Our defense is about pressure, keeping pressure on the opponent and trying to force turnovers. These guys did a fantastic job of doing that.”

The Hurricanes made six of their first nine shots, while Auburn (28-6, 15-3 SEC) opened 1-of-4 with four turnovers, helping Miami grab a 13-4 edge after just 4:19 of action.
The Tigers pulled back within five, but Miami regained its nine-point edge, 23-14, with 7:27 on the clock. At that point, the Hurricanes had five steals and zero turnovers, while holding Auburn to 5-of-19 shooting.
Miami eventually took a one-point lead, 33-32, into the locker room after the Tigers scored the final five points of the half. It marked the smallest lead of the entire session for the Hurricanes, who led for the final 19:28 of the frame.

Through 20 minutes, Miami held the Tigers to 38.7 percent shooting (12-of-31), including a 2-of-10 mark on 3-pointers after they missed their first seven attempts.
The Hurricanes scored eight straight points to begin the second half, taking a 41-32 edge with 17:35 to play. Miami went on to take a 14-point advantage, 64-50, with 7:17 left after posting an 11-4 run in just 3:12.
Auburn answered with six straight points in 80 seconds to make it 64-56 with 5:55 remaining, but Miami used an 8-2 run to go back up by 14, 72-58, with just 2:13 to play. That eventually became a game-ending 15-5 burst, as the Hurricanes won by 18 points, their largest margin of the game. Miami scored the final seven points in the last 73 seconds.
“The second half, we were everywhere. These guys were able to make plays, get to the open court,” Larrañaga said. “Auburn is a very high, up-tempo team but we feel very, very comfortable in that environment, as well. These guys ran for layups and made a lot of really good decisions in the open court. I congratulate all of them.”

Wong’s game-best point total came on 8-of-18 shooting from the field and a 5-of-5 clip at the line, and he added six rebounds. Sixth-year redshirt senior guard Kameron McGusty totaled 20 points on a superb 10-of-18 mark, also notching six rebounds, four assists and a game-best four steals. He tied the program record for steals in an NCAA Tournament game and became the third Hurricane with double-digit made field goals in such a contest.
Sixth-year redshirt senior guard Charlie Moore nearly recorded a triple-double, finishing with 15 points, a career-high nine rebounds and a game-best eight assists, adding three steals. Fourth-year junior guard Jordan Miller posted 12 points and three steals.
Sophomore guard KD Johnson and junior forward Jaylin Williams co-led the Tigers with 12 points apiece. Sophomore guard Wendell Green Jr., tallied 11 points and freshman forward Jabari Smith had 10.
Smith, a Second Team All-American and presumptive top-three NBA Draft pick, shot just 3-of-16 from the floor, including 1-of-8 from 3-point range, though he did lead all players with 15 rebounds to log a double-double. Meanwhile, sophomore forward/center Walker Kessler, a Third Team All-American, scored two points and shot 0-of-6 from the floor.
The Hurricanes shot 48.5 percent (32-of-66) from the floor and 80.0 percent (12-of-15) at the line, while limiting Auburn to just a 30.4 percent clip (21-of-69) from the field at the other end, the lowest mark by an opponent this year. En route to posting the second-highest NCAA Tournament point total, Miami set a program record for made field goals in the event.

The Hurricanes opened just 1-of-10 from 3-point range and finished 3-of-15 (20.0 percent), but still outshot the Tigers from deep, as they went 5-of-26 (19.2 percent), the second-lowest ledger by a Miami foe this year.
Miami, which committed only four turnovers and forced 13, registered 10 steals compared to Auburn’s one. That led to a staggering 30-1 edge in fast-break points and 17-2 advantage in points of giveaways for the Hurricanes, who also posted a 48-28 margin in paint points to earn the first NCAA Tournament victory over a top-two seed in program history.
The Hurricanes now head to Chicago, where they play No. 11-seeded Iowa State Friday at 9:45 p.m. ET, live on TBS from the United Center.