Miami star guard Haley Cavinder clinches first major achievement of the season

Going out strong in her final season of college basketball, Haley Cavinder bagged her first major accolade. The fifth-year player led the Miami Hurricanes past the Quinnipiac Bobcats in overtime, 83-74, in the 2024 Miami Thanksgiving Tournament on Sunday with 30 points on a 52.4% percent shooting clip, six rebounds and nine assists.

Cavinder's stellar performance earned her the MVP award for the game in the graduating senior's final campaign.

The combo guard put her imprint on the game early, securing a couple of boards, making two 3-pointers, and getting an assist before the first quarter's midway mark as the Hurricanes ended the period 23-16 up.

In the second quarter, Cavinder continued to wreak havoc on the Bobcats defense with twio straight jumpers to open the frame. She then connected on another lay-in and also excelled on the defensive end. The first half came to a close with Miami ahead by double digits, 41-26.

In the second half, Cavinder converted a putback and dished out two assists as her team's lead grew to 20, 50-30. In the third quarter, the 5-foot-5 scorer picked apart Quinnipiac basket by basket. She tallied nine more points as Miami looked on to the final frame in the lead, 59-45.

Quinnipiac would eventually claw their way back and steadily chip away at its defecit. They limited Haley to two freebies going into the 4:10 mark. Bobcats' Anna Foley then drained the go-ahead 3 to give her team their first lead of the game, 65-64, with over a minute left.

Cavinder, though, turned out to be the game's hero, as after a clutch steal by Ahnay Adams, she sent the game to overtime with a 3-pointer, 67-all, with 12 seconds remaining. The Bobcats failed to convert in their posession as the tightly contested matchup went into extra minutes.

Cavindwr got back to her stride in OT as she assisted on a lay-in right from the get-go. Successfully churning out plays for Miami to score, the Bobcats seized the momentum in their direction. Cavinder pitched in three makes from the charity stripe as Miami iced the game, 83-74.

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Both Cavinder twins were solid in their roles on Sunday

Besides Haley Cavinder, her twin sister Hanna was also decent in her outing on Sunday'. Hanna had an all-around statline of nine points, seven caroms, two assists and two steals—displaying her two-way skill for the Hurricanes.

With the Cavinder twins leading a dominating 8-0 start to the seaso , the Hurricanes next battle the Vanderbilt Commodores on Wednesday at the BankUnited Center.