Rousseau, Hurricanes’ Defense Storm Over FSU 27-10

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The Miami Hurricanes lived up to the hype and the nickname this week, storming into Tallahassee and crushing Florida State 27-10.

Gregory Rousseau was the catalyst of the Hurricanes defense, tallying another FOUR sacks in Tallahassee today.

Rousseau has a ridiculous seven sacks in his last two games and Miami found that attacking style defense which kept FSU off balance all afternoon.

Miami (5-4, 3-3) evened their ACC mark and put on their most complete performance of the season.

Jarren Williams made enough plays when it counted and finished 21-of-37 with a season high 313 yards and two long touchdowns. He continues to hold the ball too long and it hurt, Williams lost a fumble for the lone Miami turnover which gave Florida State some life.

The offensive line played their best game of the season by a mile, helped by quick passes and great blitz pickups by the running backs.

Dan Enos has been under fire for his play calling but dialed up some timely deep shots.

 

Miami was the more aggressive team for once and you could sense they did not want to let Florida State back into it late.

Jeff Thomas had a triumphant return from suspension, finishing with four catches for 64 yards including a 39-yard dime to open the scoring for Miami.

DeeJay Dallas finished with 61 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown, Cam Harris could not get it going today and actually lost five yards on just two carries.

Neither team could manage anything on the ground, Miami finished with just 40 net yards rushing. Florida State was even less effective, Miami shut down star running back Cam Akers most of the day.

Akers managed 66 yards on the ground but it took 22 carries for a paltry 3.0 yard average. He did add three receptions for 23 yards and a touchdown, but the Hurricanes made life tough for the junior running back.

Seminoles quarterback Alex Hornibrook (yeah that guy) was the latest victim of the Hurricanes pass rush which dropped him nine times on the day. Hornibrook managed just 135 yards on 17-of-31 attempts with one touchdown and an interception.

As usual with these two the defenses set the early tone and the game was chippy from the jump.

Both teams were jawing throughout the game, finally Miami came out with energy and fire from the opening whistle.

Manny Diaz (FSU alum) certainly had this game circled on the calendar day one and it showed, his fingerprints were all over the defensive game plan.

Florida State offensive coordinator Kendal Briles dialed up trick play after trick play with little success, Miami was more sound tackling and with assignment football than in recent weeks.

Shaq Quarterman (9 tackles, 3 TFL), Trevon Hall (4 tackles, sack), and Nestor Jade Silvera (6 tackles, sack) were a force for the front seven.

 

Penalties (6/65) and third down (3/15) continue to be a sore spot, but the Hurricanes were able to overcome them with timely efforts on both sides of the ball.

Special teams did their job today, Camden Price did miss one field goal but made his other two and all three extra points. KJ Osborn continues to be a solid and safe punt return option.

Lou Headley had five punts for a 44.8 yard average, including a 65-yard bomb to pin FSU near their goal line.

Miami now has three straight wins over Florida State and will carry a two game winning streak back to Miami Gardens when they host Louisville November 9th.

 

Follow us on Twitter for more Hurricanes coverage @SportsWaveDave and @CaneMaven. Subscribe to the 5 Rings Canes podcast for exclusive Canes content.

Photo by Tony Capobianco.

Breaking it Down: Nekias Duncan on Heat-Hawks II

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How is this happening?

How are the Miami Heat off to a 4-1 start with Jimmy Butler missing three games and playing passively on offense for most of the other two?

How are Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro doing this…. as rookies?

How is someone on a two-way contract, such as Chris Silva, contributing so much?

After the Heat’s latest win, this one 106-97 against the Hawks in Atlanta, Nekias Duncan (@NekiasNBA) does what he does: a comprehensive video breakdown on Twitter.

Duncan contributes to Five Reasons Sports Network from time to time, so look for more of his work here.

Still, this thread is worth your time, just like this Heat team:

 

 

 

Miami Heat secure victory behind versatile Butler, hot Nunn

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 The Miami Heat were able to secure a win behind a strong effort from Jimmy Butler.

The Miami Heat recorded a huge victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night. With Miami winning by a 106-97 margin, there were many good things to take away from the game. However, one thing stood out to me in particular: Jimmy Butler had 11 assists.

Now, I am not diminishing the efforts of Kendrick Nunn at all. His 28 points paced the Heat’s offensive attack. However, it was Butler’s contributions on Thursday evening that spearheaded the Miami Heat towards a victory. His willingness to share the basketball showed up in the box score and on the court. Five different Miami Heat players scored in double figures.  Butler himself had 21 points. In addition, he had six steals and three blocks.

This game reminded me of his days in Chicago. In Philadelphia, there were a lot of mouths to feed in terms of sharing the basketball. In Chicago, he was more of the superstar that the Bulls leaned on. I think he will serve a similar role here in Miami, but the production from the youngsters has made me believe that he will not do it all by himself.

Miami Heat received all-around effort from Butler

When I think of Jimmy Butler, I think of a player who bullies his way to the basket, and can drive to the hoop with ease. I forget sometimes how good he is defensively. He reminded me Thursday just how impactful he can be on that end. Butler is a stout defender that is not afraid to get up in the face of his man and make life uncomfortable. He plays the game with tremendous passion, and it shows.

The fact that Butler was able to combine his scoring prowess with his defensive skill set on Thursday was great to see. It’s hard to play defense in today’s NBA. It seems like everything is called a foul nowadays. It’s easy to accumulate a ton of points, it’s harder to accumulate steals and blocks. Butler did a nice job of that and as a result, he made a huge impact on the game.

He is going to be fun to watch in a Miami Heat uniform. Thursday night, he proved that. If he can play like this every single night, this team is going to make a very deep playoff run.

 

Old Teammates Won’t Let Jimmy Butler Move On

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Jimmy Butler seems to be living his best life of late.

He got paid this offseason, and traded to the city where he wanted to play.

He is a new father — of a baby girl.

And he with a team and teammates he clearly likes.

But others in the NBA won’t let the man be.

Joel Embiid and Karl-Anthony Towns, two of the game’s elite bigs — and each problematic for his own reasons — got in a skirmish Wednesday in the game between the Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves.

These days, what isn’t settled in person spills over into social media.

So it did.

And Embiid, well, he can’t leave anything alone, except the Eastern Conference Finals. He and Butler were on good terms in Philadelphia last season as teammates — Butler roundly praised Embiid a month ago during Heat training camp.

Butler was never as glowing about Towns, with the fraying of that relationship playing into his desire to leave the Timberwolves — that set up his brief partnership with Embiid in Philadelphia. Embiid apparently knows the history. Quite well.

The “3rd stringers” is a reference to Butler, during his self-imposed sabbatical in Minnesota, supposedly teaming up with 3rd stringers in practice and routing the Wolves’ starters, including Towns, in practice. You’ll remember Woj giving Jimmy something akin to Paul Bunyan status for this.

So, with two of his ex’s squabbling, will Butler leave this alone?

The answer, naturally, is no.

Butler chimed in on Embiid’s Instagram post.

So this won’t be the last of it.

Butler will be asked, probably prior to Thursday’s Miami Heat game in Atlanta. And you can be sure, he’ll answer. It would be fun if he just buried both of them.

 

The Miami Heat have no room for Dion Waiters

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The veteran and the Miami Heat should part ways.

Dion Waiters is back with the Miami Heat, but he still is on the outside looking in. He practiced with the team on Wednesday, but he will not travel with them to face the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday.

To me, Dion Waiters is the odd man out right now for the Miami Heat. The team has gotten some great contributions from rookies like Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro. Many did not predict that the youth movement would start out as smoothly as it has for the Heat. The two rookies don’t even look like first-year players. They look like seasoned veterans, and have put a spark into this Miami Heat team.

The Miami Heat have found their dynamic duo

For their efforts, Nunn and Herro have averaged 21 and 16.3 points. One of the key assets of Waiters’s game is his ability to provide scoring. He is a volume shooter who used to be able to provide that spark off the bench. Now, that role is filled. Quite honestly, I don’t see where Waiters fits into this team at the moment. The whole situation is kind of fascinating. With the emergence of the rookies and the fact that Waiters’ tenure with the Heat has taken an unfortunate turn, it’s the perfect juxtaposition.

I will be interested to see what Miami does with him. They can’t really break up the rotation at the moment. Things are firing on all cylinders, and it will be stupid to jeopardize that. I could see him forcing his way out of Miami. Including this year, he has  two years left on his contract and is set to become an unrestricted free agent in 2021. Making a $13 million per season, the contract doesn’t exactly make him the easiest players to move. If anything, is a hindrance.

Waiters is the odd man out

As it stands right now, I don’t see where he fits on the Miami Heat. He is a good player and has done a lot for them. However, it would be too risky to break up the roster right now. Everybody seems to be jelling and meshing with each other. He would definitely be a bigger asset to another team. He could come back and be a solid rotation player, assuming they don’t change the way they’re doing things right now. However, I don’t see that happening. I think his days as a member of the Miami Heat are numbered, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in a new uniform before the trade deadline. It would be best for both parties to move in a new direction.

 

 

Panthers Look to Even up on Road Trip vs Avalanche

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The Florida Panthers (5-3-4, 14 points) seek to close out an up-and-down four game road trip Wednesday when they visit the Colorado Avalanche.

Florida has lost two out of three away from Sunrise, including a 7-2 waxing at Vancouver Monday night.

 

Backup goalie Sam Montembeault was roughed up in that one, which forced Sergei Bobrovsky to step in on his scheduled day off.

Florida had their eight game point streak snapped and have given up 15 goals in their last three games, losing two.

Alexsander Barkov is still seeking his first goal but is tied for the team lead in overall points thanks to his 13 assists.

Evgenii Davodov has boosted the Florida offense with points in three straight games (2 goals, assist).

Mackenzie Weegar has also provided a much lift in scoring from the blue line, he picked up two assists in their 6-2 win at Edmonton during the trip.

Weegar leads all defenseman for the Panthers with eight points on three goals and five assists.

Bobrovsky (4-2-3, 3.79GAA, .870SV%) should get the start in net for the Panthers.

Meanwhile for the Avalanche they enter the game losing two out of three as well but have been stellar to start the season (8-2-1, 17 points).

Colorado fell to the Anaheim Ducks in their last game on Saturday and should be well rested with three full days to prepare.

Nathan McKinnon leads the Avs with 15 points and had a goal and an assist in Colorado’s 5-4 win against the Panthers October 18th.

Colorado is a solid offense, ranking 10th in the NHL in goals scored with 258 and seventh in power play conversions at 22%. Florida has been solid on the penalty kill, ranking 10th killing 81.3% when down a man.

The Panthers will still be without forward Vincent Trocheck while Colorado is down top forwards Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen.

Florida will hopefully be able to put up a solid defensive effort given the shuffling top lines for Colorado, play on the blue line continues to be an issue for the Cats.

Puck drops from the Pepsi Center in Denver is 10:00PM EST.

Make sure to follow @SportsWaveDave for more Florida Panthers news. 

Check out the Goldie On Ice Podcast hosted by Steve Goldstein for exclusive Panthers content. Photo by Tony Capobianco

 

The Dolphins' free agent signings fit into coach Brian Flores' scheme. (Tony Capobianco for Five Reasons Sports)

ESPN FPI: Miami has a great shot at the top pick in next year’s draft

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According to ESPN’s Football Power Index, the Miami Dolphins have a 70 percent chance at the top pick in the 2020 draft. It is safe to say that 2019 hasn’t been the easiest season for the Miami Dolphins, but the front office, coaching staff and fan base is hoping it will pay off in the end.

Behind them is the winless Bengals, who have a 17 percent chance according to the power index.

However, Cincinnati did just announce the benching of Andy Dalton. The nine-year veteran has nine touchdowns and eight interceptions under center for the Bengals. In fact, he is the first quarterback to lead a team to both a 8-0 and 0-8 start.

However,  Ryan Finley is stepping in, a rookie who was drafted in the fourth round of the NFL draft.

Finley will have some help as star receiver A.J. Green is expected to return sooner rather than later for Cincinnati.

Despite a winless first-half of the season, Miami is hoping the Bengals can go on a run and win a handful of games in order to create some distance in the race for the first pick in the draft.

Keep in mind that Dolphins coach Brian Flores has his sights set on wins, not the top pick in the draft. Miami is starting to show signs of a competitive football team, despite the 0-7 record.

The Jets looking like one of the worst teams in the NFL, here are Miami’s “biggest” games remaining on the nine-game schedule:

Jets at Dolphins, Nov. 3; Dolphins at Jets, Dec. 8; Bengals at Dolphins, Dec. 22.

It hasn’t been the easiest season, but with a little luck, Brian Flores and company can continue to show signs that they’re the right crew for the job without ruining Miami’s chance at a top pick.

Heat Win Behind Stellar Night from Bucket Bros

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The Miami Heat rolled into Tuesday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks with a 2-1 record. Coming off a rollercoaster weekend that had fans salivating at the thought of adding a top 15 player to a roster that had shown loads of grit and resolve, but lacked the reliability of a tried and true closer.

Enter Jimmy Butler. Back with the team after the birth of his daughter, Rylee (pronounced Riley . . . how’s that for culture?) Jimmy entered a locker room full of young players, confident in their roles and a couple of vets adjusting to theirs.

Butler’s impact was felt almost immediately as he showcased his offensive arsenal early. A measured drive to the rim, a catch and shoot 3, an and-one off balance runner in the lane . . . Butler was in his bag early scoring 12 points in the first quarter.

The second quarter, however, belonged to Tyler Herro. Apparently Herro was tired of all the Kendrick Nunn love and decided to enter into the Rookie of the Year conversation himself. Herro scored 19 in the 2nd, rediscovering the shooting stroke that dazzled fans in the preseason.

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young came into the game torching opposing defenses, but his night was short-lived after he was stripped in the lane by Justise Winslow and stepped down awkwardly with his right foot, twisting his ankle.

But even before the Hawks lost their superstar point guard, the Heat’s defense looked stout, outside of consistently losing track of big man John Collins. After Young’s exit, though, the Hawks offense turned anemic without a consistent shot creator on the floor all night. The Heat took full advantage, keeping the Hawks in the low 40’s in FG percentage.

The defensive triumvirate of Butler, Winslow and Bam Adebayo will be something to watch closely all year. With Coach Erik Spoelstra leaving either Butler or Winslow on the floor until late in the game to guard the perimeter. The Hawks promptly scored with ease and Butler was back in the game the next play. With Winslow leading the team in minutes on the young season, he undoubtedly welcomed the opportunity to share the defensive load.

Goran Dragic chipped in another great performance off the bench with 21 pts.  The pressure that Dragic puts on opposing second units is impressive. He has stated that Sixth Man of the Year is his personal goal and so far it seems well within reach.

After carrying an 18 point lead into the 4th quarter, things got tight late behind a full court press from the Hawks and half court traps.  The Heat were able to hang on (112-97) with the night ultimately belonging to the debut of Butler with 21 pts and a record setting effort from Herro.

Herro scored the most ever points off the bench by a Heat rookie with 29, the record was previously held by Michael Beasley with 28.

Adebayo finished with 17 pts and 10 rebs, securing his third double-double in 4 games. Nunn finished with 17 pts as well, continuing his hot scoring streak.

The Heat play next on Thursday night against these same Hawks with Young’s return to the lineup uncertain.

 

Erik Spoelstra and the officials, a love story

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Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra had himself quite the weekend.

Miami had back to back games over the weekend against the Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves. In both games, Spoelstra received attention for his antics criticizing poor officiating In crucial parts of the game. Saturday night against Milwaukee Heat center, Bam Adebayo was trapped in the corner by George Hill and Brook Lopez. Spoelstra was signaling timeout to the referees but wasn’t awarded one, this led to him running onto the court during the middle of a Giannis Antetokounmpo fast break and receiving a technical foul.  

The following night in Minnesota during the fourth quarter of a closely contested game the officials seemed to have missed a kicked ball violation on Karl Anthony-Towns. This led to an Andrew Wiggins three which ultimately sealed the game for the Timberwolves. Spoelstra was livid and individually pointed at each official during a timeout in which he appears to be yelling at them as well. 

Emotions were extremely high as both games over the weekend came down to key possessions late. Last season Spoelstra also reached a point where he was clearly frustrated with Nba officiating after a loss to the Golden State Warriors In mid-February. This year however It starts early as he has shown his frustration often with crucial calls down the stretch going in favor of the opposition. The Heat split the weekend series and find themselves at 2-1 facing Eastern Conference player of the week, Trae Young, and the Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night at the American Airlines Arena. 

Miami Dolphins secure draft capital in Aqib Talib trade

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The Miami Dolphins made a move on Tuesday.

The Miami Dolphins have made a major move ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline, and this one should boost the secondary. The Dolphins acquired Aqib Talib from the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for a late-round future draft pick.

If only, he was the Aqib Talib of old. He is currently on IR due to a rib injury. Chances are, he will never see a snap for the Miami Dolphins. Miami basically took on his $4.2 million salary for a fifth-round draft pick.

This is certainly an intriguing move to me. Miami gets an asset that will be used to bolster the team in the future. The fact that they were willing to take on the money portion of things surprises me. However, when you are in a rebuild, the price for a draft pick may be a bit hefty at times.

Miami head coach Brian Flores has already expressed public support for the move. From the sounds of it, Flores hopes to be able to work with Talib. However, there is no denying that the crown jewel in this deal was the draft pick. If the Dolphins can manage to keep Talib around for longer than just this season, that is great. However, I wouldn’t count on it. If Talib walks after the 2019 season, then Miami at least has a draft pick to play with for the future.

It’s intriguing to see all this roster reshuffling. It may seem a little bit tedious right now, but it should put the Miami Dolphins in a better position for the future. Now, the big challenge for the organization will be to make sure that they make the right decisions with these draft picks in the coming years. Again, it is easier said than done. However, I am confident that the organization has done their research. For a rebuild as big as this one, it makes sense to not leave any stone unturned. That certainly was the mindset on Tuesday, as they continue to stockpile resources.