Miami rallies to down Saint Mary's 78-64

The NCAA tournament's visit to Arkansas began with a great performance by (Mc)Clinton.

Jack McClinton scored a career-high 38 points — 32 during a brilliant second half — and seventh-seeded Miami rallied for a 78-64 win over 10th-seeded Saint Mary's in the first round of the South Regional on Friday.

The Hurricanes trailed 32-27 at intermission, but McClinton was beginning to assert himself. Just before halftime, he drove easily toward the basket a couple times. That, apparently, was just a warning.

Miami (23-10) went on a 25-5 run shortly after intermission. McClinton scored 10 straight points for the Hurricanes early in that stretch. Later, after the Gaels (25-7) pulled within eight at 64-56, McClinton calmly sank an open 3-pointer from the left corner.

The win gives Hurricanes coach Frank Haith a potential second-round matchup with second-seeded Texas, where Haith was an assistant under Rick Barnes for three seasons before taking over at Miami.

The Hurricanes quickly fell behind 9-2 early in the first half. They turned the ball over six times before the second official timeout — one errant pass sailed right into the arms of Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett. Miami was 1-of-9 from the field before James Dews scored an easy basket off an inbound pass.

The Gaels had their own problems with turnovers, but they pushed their lead back to seven near the end of the half and appeared comfortable after a long trip from California.

Patty Mills, the Gaels' freshman point guard from Australia, snapped out of a shooting slump from 3-point range. He made three shots from long distance in the first half and six for the game, earning cheers of "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi" from the Saint Mary's supporters.

Mills, one of four players on the Saint Mary's roster from Australia, scored 24 points. He and McClinton were the only players on either team in double digits.

Miami, which was predicted to be the Atlantic Coast Conference's worst team this season, has now won 8 of 11, part of a remarkable turnaround after a 12-20 record a season ago.

Saint Mary's joined WCC tournament winner San Diego and regular-season champion Gonzaga in the tournament, the first time the conference has placed three teams in the NCAAs.

Saint Mary's has won only one NCAA tournament game. In 1959, the team had a first-round bye in a field of 23 teams. After beating Idaho State, the Gaels were a win from the Final Four, but they lost to eventual national champion California.

(This version CORRECTS Mills' 3-pointers in game to six, not five)