Hurricanes learn hard lessons in season-opening loss to No. 1 Gators

Miami Herald · Noah White · 2026-11-03 04:18 UTC

Miami struggled in a 77-67 loss to No. 1 Florida, with Shelton Henderson and Malik Reneau limited and Acaden Lewis bright in the Hurricanes' season-opening game.

Sitting at a podium in a small room buried beneath Benchmark Arena, Jai Lucas couldn’t help but catch some more basketball. This was only a few minutes after the Miami Hurricanes fell to No. 1 Florida 77-67 in a game in which they shot 35% from the field, 23.5% from three, went on a 1-for-19 run, and watched their stars, Shelton Henderson and Malik Reneau, combine for 12 points.

So Lucas, the No. 14 Hurricanes’ youthful-lead man, needed a diversion, and Florida’s highlights from college basketball’s opening night plastered the news conference TVs. Then his attention shifted.

“Championship teams are built like that,” he said, as if having pondered and settled on an answer. “You gotta be able to play in some wars like that. That’s what an Elite Eight, Sweet 16 feels like.”

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