'Canes get first ACC win over N.C. State

CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA - Needing a basket with the game on the line, Cameron Bennerman hit the side of the backboard instead.<br> <br> Bennerman badly misfired on a 3-point try from the corner, and North Carolina State lost its third game in a row Sunday, 67-66 at Miami.<br> <br> The league victory was the first for Atlantic Coast Conference newcomer Miami.<br> <br> Guillermo Diaz scored 26 points for the Hurricanes but missed the front end of a 1-and-1 to give the Wolfpack possession with 14 seconds left. After a timeout, Ilian Evtimov drove the lane and fed Bennerman, who took the last shot with 2 seconds to go.<br> <br> ``I felt like I had to rush it,&#39;&#39; Bennerman said. ``By the time I got the ball, I felt like there was less time left than there really was. I wish I would have made that shot, but it didn&#39;t fall.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The Wolfpack (10-4, 0-1) have fallen out of the Top 25 and are mired in their longest losing streak since 2000-01.<br> <br> ``We&#39;ve just got to stick together and keep working,&#39;&#39; coach Herb Sendek said. ``We&#39;re going through a difficult stretch right now.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Miami (10-3, 1-1 ACC) earned its ninth win in 10 games.<br> <br> ``We showed tremendous poise,&#39;&#39; coach Frank Haith said. ``We didn&#39;t flinch.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Diaz, who has scored 53 points in Miami&#39;s two league games, missed his first four shots and went scoreless over the first 11 minutes. But he finished 5-for-9 from 3-point range.<br> <br> ``I just want to win all the games, all the time,&#39;&#39; the sophomore guard said.<br> <br> North Carolina State&#39;s Julius Hodge, hampered by ankle and back injuries, had 12 rebounds but just 14 points, five below his average. He went only 4-for-10 from the free-throw line and missed a 15-foot shot that would have tied the game with a minute left.<br> <br> ``I&#39;ll have to continue to work, play hard, fight through a little adversity,&#39;&#39; Hodge said. ``Everybody goes through some pain. I&#39;m cool.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Hodge, who missed a game for the first time in his career a week ago because of sprained ankle, limped at times and occasionally winced as he clutched his back.<br> <br> ``It started bothering him earlier this week,&#39;&#39; Sendek said. ``He really gutted it out.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Robert Hite scored 19 points for the Hurricanes, whose victory delighted a crowd of 6,067, the first home sellout for Miami in two years.<br> <br> Evtimov scored a season-high 19 points, while Andrew Brackman added 16 and Engin Atsur 15 for the Wolfpack. They made 12 of 24 3-point tries but were outrebounded 40-27. The Hurricanes had 17 offensive rebounds.<br> <br> ``That&#39;s been happening all season with us,&#39;&#39; Bennerman said. ``We need to figure out a way to stop it. We keep talking about it, and yelling in the locker room, slapping each other and stuff. But unless you go out there and do it, it&#39;s just a waste of energy.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The Wolfpack took a 61-57 lead by running off eight consecutive points, including a layup by Hodge that put them ahead.<br> <br> The Hurricanes answered with eight straight points of their own. A bad pass by Evtimov triggered a Miami fast break, leading to a layup by Hite that made it 65-61 with 2:17 to go.<br> <br> ``It was a terrible way to lose,&#39;&#39; Evtimov said. ``We had our chance but blew it.&#39;&#39;

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