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March Madness: No. 5 Miami takes out No. 1 Houston to make NCAA tournament history

The 2023 men's NCAA tournament is the first without a No. 1 seed in the Elite Eight

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Elite Eight won’t feature any No. 1 seeds for the first time in NCAA men's tournament history.

Nijel Pack’s hot shooting propelled No. 5 Miami to an 89-75 win over No. 1 Houston in the Midwest region on Friday night. Miami’s win came less than an hour after No. 1 Alabama lost to No. 5 San Diego State in the South region.

Pack was unconscious from behind the 3-point line as he did a fantastic job getting open looks and even making contested 3s. He finished the game 7-of-10 from deep and his seventh 3-pointer came with 12:12 to go to give the Hurricanes a 62-53 lead.

Houston had cut Miami’s six-point halftime lead to two just minutes earlier but Pack’s 3 came in the midst of a 16-2 run that opened up a 17-point lead for the Hurricanes with 10:03 to go.

Houston couldn’t do anything to catch up after that. The Cougars ended up trading baskets with Miami every time they attempted to make a run. Pack scored a game-high 26 points while teammate Isaiah Wong had 20.

With the help of Pack’s shooting, Miami was extremely efficient against a Houston defense that has been one of the best in the country. Houston entered Friday night’s game leading the country in opponent field-goal percentage at 36%. Miami shot nearly 52% from the field despite every other player not named Pack combining to shoot 4-of-15 from behind the arc.

Miami also made it a point to get out and run on the Cougars. In addition to playing fantastic defense, Houston is one of the slowest teams in the country. Miami got out in transition as much as it could in the first half as Houston’s last lead of the game came with 4:48 to go before halftime.

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - MARCH 24: Nijel Pack #24 of the Miami Hurricanes celebrates a three-point basket against Jarace Walker #25 of the Houston Cougars during the second half in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at T-Mobile Center on March 24, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Nijel Pack made seven 3-pointers as Miami took out the last remaining No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

An unpredictable NCAA tournament

Alabama and Houston entered Friday night’s Sweet 16 games as the last two No. 1 seeds remaining in the NCAA men's tournament. Purdue became just the second No. 1 seed to lose in the first round when it lost to Fairleigh Dickinson a week ago and Kansas lost to Arkansas in the second round.

The Crimson Tide and Cougars were favored by 7.5 points ahead of their matchups and a win by either one would have set up a rare tournament situation. Just four Elite Eights have featured a single No. 1 seed.

Yet neither was able to win Friday night in a great encapsulation of how wild this tournament has been. In addition to Fairleigh Dickinson’s victory over Purdue, No. 15 Princeton took out No. 2 Arizona in the first round and No. 9 Florida Atlantic is also in the Elite Eight.

Miami’s second consecutive Elite Eight trip

It’s the second straight season Miami has made it to the Elite Eight as a team with a seed outside the top four. The Hurricanes were a surprise Elite Eight member a season ago as a No. 10 seed when they upset No. 2 Auburn in the second round before losing to eventual national champions Kansas.

With leading scorer Kameron McGusty out of eligibility, head coach Jim Larrañaga turned to the transfer portal to reload the team. Pack arrived from Kansas State and Norchad Omier transferred from Arkansas State.

They immediately became key contributors as the Hurricanes went from fourth to first in the ACC. Miami won the regular season ACC title by going 15-5 through the league as Omier averaged a double-double and Pack scored 13 points per game.

But the Hurricanes made an early exit from the ACC tournament against Duke after Omier left the game in the opening minutes of the first half after suffering a right ankle injury. That loss, combined with Miami’s 5-5 record in Quad 1 games, relegated the Hurricanes to a No. 5 seed for the NCAA tournament.

Houston’s disappointing end

Houston entered the NCAA tournament as one of the betting favorites thanks to its style of play, talent across the floor and its recent history of tournament success. The Cougars made the Elite Eight a season ago and made the Final Four in 2021.

Houston lost just twice in the AAC all season as it gave up an average of 56 points a game. And as Miami cracked the code on its defense Friday night, Houston couldn’t shoot well enough to keep up.

The Cougars shot less than 38% from the field and settled for 31 3-point attempts out of its 64 shots. They made just nine 3-pointers as Marcus Sasser, Jamal Shead and Tramon Mark combined to go 5-of-19 from deep.

The loss also means Houston’s basketball time in the American Athletic Conference is officially over. The Cougars are set to move to the Big 12 over the summer and will face a much stiffer regular-season test in what’s been the best basketball conference in the country. With Sasser assuredly off to the NBA but Mark and Shead possibly coming back for another season, Houston should be well positioned to be at the top of the conference.

It’s also safe to say Houston isn’t playing for conference titles at this point. After four consecutive Sweet 16 appearances, the Cougars are fighting for a national title. And there’s still work to do to get one.