Coming into her senior campaign, guard Adrienne Motley had two goals in mind: making a deep run into the NCAA Tournament and passing current assistant coach and former University of Miami great Octavia Blue on the school’s all-time scoring list.
On Sunday, Motley checked one of the accomplishments off her list.
The two-time All-ACC pick passed Blue’s total of 1,724 points, climbing into sole possession of No. 7 in program history as the No. 16 Hurricanes dominated the Clemson Tigers 81-57.
It was a special day for UM in more ways than one. The team celebrated its women’s athletic program and hosted its annual Play4Kay game, honoring Hall of Fame NC State coach Kay Yow who passed away from breast cancer eight years ago.
“When I ran back down, I slapped Blue’s hand, but this is just a blessing,” Motley said. “It was just fun to be out there and give the crowd a show. It was bigger than us today, and we played like it. We had so much fun.”
Motley wasn’t the only Hurricane to achieve a milestone against the Tigers. Backcourt partner Jessica Thomas notched the 1,200th point of her collegiate career. Thomas’ 18 points paced three other double-figure scorers for Miami.
Miami (19-6, 8-5 ACC) controlled play for the majority of the game, holding the lead for over 36 minutes.
The Canes capped off its offensive onslaught in the first quarter with a bang as sophomore guard Laura Cornelius hit a three-pointer at the buzzer, giving Miami a 25-13 advantage. UM shot the ball efficiently in the first 10 minutes (8–16) and assisted on five of its first eight buckets.
In the second period, Miami continued its sharpshooting, going up by as many as 22 points and ultimately taking a 48-30 lead into the break.
The Hurricanes’ first-half totals in points and field-goal percentage both tied their best marks of the season.
Coming out of the locker room, Miami dominated, outscoring Clemson (14-12, 3-10 ACC) 17-4 in the third quarter. The Canes took a 65-34 advantage into the final 10 minutes.
Motley finished with 15 points, and Cornelius added 14.
“We knew there were people in the audience that wanted to see a fight and wanted to have some joy, and we hope we provided that,” Hurricanes Coach Katie Meier said. “I was really, really happy. Just to see the smiles and the fun, that’s us. We’re so emotional, and we had a day that was emotional and real positive. We gave a gift to the people that have been supporting us.”
The Hurricanes beat the Tigers in bench scoring 28-13, making it the 21st time in 25 games this season that Miami has led its opponent in this category.
Looking to extend its winning streak to three, the Hurricanes will travel to play the No. 14 Duke Blue Devils at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
“We just have a great opportunity coming up,” Motley said. “We just take it a game at a time. The regular season is coming to a close, so we definitely need to get a signature win, and Cameron [Indoor] would be a fine place to do it at.