Miami finds itself in a slump at a critical juncture of the schedule as it prepares to visit Boston College on Saturday in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

The Hurricanes (17-5, 6-3 ACC) have followed a 10-game win streak with a 2-3 stretch that has endangered their NCAA Tournament hopes.

Jai Lucas, Miami’s first-year head coach, said the path to improvement is on defense.

“We have to guard the ball better,” Lucas said. “We have to defend without fouling.”

Miami ranks fourth in the ACC in scoring (84.7) and fifth in defensive average (70.1). The Hurricanes also lead the league in field-goal percentage (51.1).

The issue is that Miami ranks last in the ACC in both 3-pointers made per game (6.8) and 3-point-percentage allowed (35.4). The Hurricanes allowed Cal to make 10 of 23 shots from the arc in an 86-85 loss last week.

Miami’s Malik Reneau ranks fifth in the ACC in scoring (19.9), and on Thursday he was one of 10 players named to the Karl Malone Award watch list for top power forward in the country.

Ernest Udeh Jr. tied for first in the league in rebounds (9.9 per game) and Shelton Henderson is third in field-goal percentage (60.8). Tre Donaldson is Miami’s second-leading scorer (16 ppg) and fourth in the ACC in assists (6.1), while Tru Washington adds 11.9 points and 1.9 steals per game.

Boston College (9-13, 2-7) arrives in Miami on a three-game losing streak. The Eagles have also lost five straight road games, and they haven’t won away from home since defeating Temple on Nov. 15.

Most recently, the Eagles lost 67-49 at No. 4 Duke on Tuesday. Duke got off to a 13-0 start as Boston College missed its first six shots and turned the ball over three times during that span.

“I wasn’t expecting that,” Boston College coach Earl Grant said of his team’s poor start. “We hadn’t experienced that all year. They hit us.”

For the season, Boston College ranks last in the league in scoring (67.2), field-goal percentage (40.4), assists (11.3) and 3-point percentage (29.4).

Boston College is led by Fred Payne, who tallies 15.1 points and 3.0 assists per game, and Donald Hand Jr. (14.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg). Jayden Hastings adds 5.9 rebounds per game and ranks fourth in the ACC in blocked shots (1.7).

–Field Level Media

While little has gone right for Marquette this season, it has found some success on its home court of late.

The Golden Eagles (8-15, 3-9 Big East) hope that carries over into Saturday’s game against Butler in Milwaukee.

Marquette could be getting the Bulldogs (13-10, 4-8) at the right moment as they enter on a three-game losing streak.

Barring a conference tournament miracle, the Golden Eagles’ run of four NCAA Tournament appearances in as many seasons under coach Shaka Smart will come to an end.

But since a 1-7 start to conference play, Marquette has won two of its last four games, both at home. Last time the Golden Eagles played at home, they delivered a surprising 86-62 thrashing of Creighton on Jan. 27.

Overall, Marquette has won three of its last four home games. The Golden Eagles have had a week off since their last game, a 69-64 loss at Seton Hall in which they led by eight at halftime but failed to secure their first road/neutral-site win.

“Coming out of the half, especially when we’re up, we got to continue to, we always say, ‘Step on their throats,'” forward Ben Gold said. “Be the aggressive team.”

Marquette freshman Nigel James Jr. continues to be a bright spot in a down season. He scored 16 points in the loss and averages a team-high 15.4 points per game.

Butler has lost three straight games since the last time it faced Marquette, an 87-76 win in Indianapolis on Jan. 23.

That has sent the Bulldogs spiraling towards the bottom of the Big East pack.

Butler has been struggling despite being led by a pair of All-Big East frontrunners in Finley Bizjack (second in the Big East with 17.7 points per game) and Michael Ajayi (conference-leading 11.3 rebounds per game, fourth in scoring at 16.2 ppg).

Bizjack went off for a season-high 30 points in the team’s last game at Providence on Feb. 4. However, he missed a pair of free throws with 1.3 seconds left in regulation after he had been 12-for-12 at the line, and the Bulldogs lost 97-87 in double overtime.

It was the culmination of Butler blowing a six-point lead with 3:06 left in regulation.

“By no means, obviously, did that cost us the game,” Butler coach Thad Matta said. “We had other plays we needed to make along the way.”

–Field Level Media

Texas will face its former coach Chris Beard when it hosts reeling Ole Miss on Saturday afternoon in a Southeastern Conference clash in Austin, Texas.

The Longhorns (14-9, 5-5 SEC) have won two consecutive games and three of their past four, with the most recent victory an 84-75 decision at home over South Carolina. Dailyn Swain amassed team highs of 22 points and 10 rebounds in the win.

Tramon Mark added 18 points for Texas in the win while Matas Vokietaitis and Camden Heide each had 12. The Longhorns earned a 40-25 edge on the glass and grabbed 17 offensive rebounds.

“It was great to see (Mark) step up and find his rhythm — we’re much more difficult to defend when he’s scoring as well,” Texas coach Sean Miller said. “And the other guy that’s just really playing well right now is (Heide). His ability to shoot the ball, his 3-point shots when South Carolina went to the zone, broke the game open.”

It will be the first trip back to Austin on the Ole Miss bench for Beard, who was fired at Texas in January 2023 after a domestic violence charge a month earlier.

“We expect to have a game against a really good team playing their best, prepared, and we have to be equally prepared and juiced up and ready to go and try to take advantage of our home atmosphere,” Miller said about Saturday’s game and Beard’s return.

With his Texas tenure in the rearview mirror, Beard’s focus these days is on getting his Rebels team back on track.

Ole Miss (11-11, 3-6) has dropped four straight games, most recently an 84-66 dismantling on the road by Tennessee on Tuesday. The Rebels got 15 points apiece from Patton Pinkins and AJ Storr while Ilias Kamardine added 11 and Eduardo Klafke had 10 in the loss.

Ole Miss trailed by just six points eight minutes into the second half before surrendering a run over the middle of the half that doomed its chances at a comeback.

Beard was not around at the end of the Tennessee game after being ejected with 6:15 remaining.

“All we ask for is a consistent whistle,” Beard said. “The free-throw differential in (the Tennessee) game and the foul differential is just frustrating from a coaching standpoint and a playing standpoint. At some point as a coach, you have to fight for your players.”

–Field Level Media