Former K-State star Nijel Pack’s ‘sensational’ shooting helps Miami upset Houston
Houston guard Jamal Shead looked at teammate J’Wan Roberts Friday night with a hint of disbelief on his face.
Roberts’ return gaze was similar, as the two Cougars sought to reconcile in their minds who was supposed to be guarding Miami’s Nijel Pack when he drained a yet another long three-pointer.
Pack, the former Kansas State guard, looked right at home in his return to T-Mobile Center. He scored a game-high 26 points helping the Hurricanes upset No. 1-seeded Houston 89-75 in the NCAA Tournament’s Midwest Regional semifinal.
Pack, the former Kansas State guard, made 7 of 10 three-point attempts and was 8-of-12 overall from the field.
“Just, you know, a blessing (being) back in this arena for sure,” Pack said. “My teammates found me early and got me going and I felt comfortable from the jump ball. They kept feeding me and telling me to shoot the ball, and I just had a lot of confidence and they were able to go in.”
Pack started all but one game in two seasons at Kansas State. He was an All-Big 12 honoree during the 2021-22 season when he won the league’s Most Improved Player award. But when Jerome Tang was hired last March as the Wildcats’ coach, Pack transferred to Miami.
His arrival in South Florida made news across the country. He received a two-year, $800,000 NIL deal from LifeWallet, which included a car.
Pack may be wearing a different jersey but that didn’t affect his long-range shooting Friday.
The Midwest Regional semifinal was Pack’s fifth game at T-Mobile Center, including three Big 12 Tournament contests and a matchup against Arkansas with the Wildcats. He’s now shooting 57.9% from three-point range (22-of-38) in those contests.
Pack’s shooting didn’t surprise Houston coach Kelvin Sampson. It’s where those shots were taken.
“Pack’s range was a little better than I anticipated,” Sampson said. “We guarded him to 23, 24 feet. He hit some tough ones. When you hit tough shots like that, it kind of raises the level of play for everybody.”
Pack’s new coach, Miami’s Jim Larrañaga, said the fifth-seed Hurricanes needed that scoring.
“He was ridiculous,” Larrañaga said. “I don’t know how far those shots were. But I think I’ve told people who say to me, ‘What do you say when he misses one of those long shots?’ And what I say is: ‘Keep shooting.’
“The guy is a great shooter. These guys are great offensive players. At one of the timeouts I just said to (associate head coach Bill) Courtney, ‘We’ve got to just keep scoring because these guys are tough. They’re gonna score. They’re driving the ball to the basket. I was very concerned about Nijel getting in foul trouble. ... (He) ended up with four but he was able to stay in the game and he had a sensational game.”
On Sunday, Pack will look to continue his hot shooting in Kansas City and possibly help the Hurricanes advance to the Final Four.
The Star’s Blair Kerkhoff contributed to this story
