DALLAS (AP) — Boopie and the Mustangs could become quite a hit in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
North Carolina, as much as it tried, couldn't shut down point guard Boopie Miller while he got plenty of help from tough forward Corey Washington and the rest of his SMU teammates.
Miller had 27 points on 10-of-13 shooting and tied his career high with 12 assists, Washington scored nine of the Mustangs' first 11 points after halftime Saturday to put them
ahead to stay after coach Andy Enfield wasn't even sure he would be back on the court, and SMU won its ACC opener 97-83 over the No. 12 Tar Heels.
“They were just able to get anything they wanted to offensively. Boopie was in control of the ball,” North Carolina coach Hubert Davis said. “We tried to take the ball out of his hands and guys stepped up and made shots, but he still was able to get the ball to his teammates at the right spot to be able to do something with it.”
Miller, in his second season with the Mustangs after transferring from Wake Forest, was hampered by a bruised foot last season that caused him to miss several games throughout their first ACC schedule. SMU finished 24-11 overall, not enough to get into the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017
He was coming off his second triple-double of the season — the only men's player with two this season — and is healthy going into ACC play this time.
“Every game is circled,” Miller said. “I feel like I let my team down last year.”
SMU has its first win over a ranked team in Enfield's two seasons. The last for the Mustangs had been over No. 6 Houston nearly four years ago.
Miller made 10 of 13 field goals against the Tar Heels, with only two turnovers in 33 1/2 minutes — he was limited in the first half by some early fouls. On a 3-pointer in front of the SMU bench with 14 1/2 minutes left, his step-back, crossover move had UNC standout freshman Caleb Wilson losing his balance and almost falling down.
“Just one of the best performances I've seen for a guard,” said Enfield, who previously coached Southern California and Florida Gulf Coast. “To not only score that many points, but had 12 assists in a game on this stage."
Fellow guard B.J. Edwards added 15 points and six assists, with only two turnovers in nearly 39 minutes. Jaron Pierre had 13 points. The Mustangs shot 60% overall (36 of 60) and 52% (14 of 27) on 3-pointers.
Washington banged knees with another player in the first half. While his knee was hurting, the forward said his mindset was getting the win, and knowing the Mustangs needed to come out strong after halftime — when the game was tied after they had led by nine points three different times.
The second half-opening stretch for Washington included two tiebreaking 3-pointers. That second 3 with 17:01 left snapped a 47-all tie and put SMU ahead to stay.
“He’s probably going to be very sore tomorrow," Enfield said. “But for now, he feels pretty good."
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