On one end of the phone was Angel Rodriguez, who had just been granted a release from Kansas State. On the other end was Miami head coach Jim Larranaga, who had five scholarships available in the spring of 2013.

“How scary was it when we had five scholarships in the spring?” Larranaga said. “Five! I’m like, ‘Who’re we getting in the springtime?’”

Rodriguez was the first recruit to come knocking. He in turn recruited Sheldon McClellan, who was transferring from Texas. On McClellan’s visit, Rodriguez was his host.

Among a roster with nine new players — four freshmen and five transfers — Rodriguez and McClellan represent the mold for how to integrate transfers into a system. They’re No. 1 and No. 2 on the team in scoring, assists and steals per game. Together, they’ve helped lead Miami (12-5, 2-2 Atlantic Coast) to wins over then-No. 8 Florida and then-No. 4 Duke.

“I’m grateful that I had him when I was sitting out,” Rodriguez said of McClellan. “Because I think we both made each other’s transfer year a lot easier than what it normally would be if you do it by yourself.”

Rodriguez and McClellan weren’t always friends — they started out as opponents in the Big 12. Although they had never spoken, the two shared a communal dislike.

“When you play against guys, I don’t think you’re supposed to be best friends,” Rodriguez said. “And I told him he looked kind of arrogant. He said the same thing about me.”

But two separate situations brought them together. McClellan realized he wanted to transfer late in his sophomore season because he didn’t get the playing time he desired.

Rodriguez had no plans to leave Kansas State after his sophomore season, but his mother had family trouble in Puerto Rico. In a snap decision over the course of a day, Rodriguez decided to transfer. His mother wanted him closer to home, and Miami was as close as he could have gotten.

Miami was the only school Rodriguez wanted to transfer to, and Larranaga had significant interest in Rodriguez. On his first visit to Miami, Rodriguez committed, signing his paperwork.

“When I found out that he transferred to Miami,” McClellan said, “That kind of led me to the school because I wanted to play with him because I knew that he was a competitor.”

Rodriguez recalls the very first time he played with McClellan and the two made an instant connection. Rodriguez was able to find McClellan open throughout the practice and the two just clicked, he said.

Larranaga allows players to have freedom in Miami’s offense. In practice, he teaches the team how to play offense, but when it comes time for the game, leaves it up to his players to make plays.

On Jan. 13 versus Duke, Rodriguez stole a baseline inbound pass with one minute left, dribbled around three defenders and stumbled to the right of the paint. The lone defender slid to Rodriguez, McClellan cut along the baseline to the net and Rodriguez lobbed an alley-oop pass.

As McClellan peaked in his jump, Miami’s lead peaked, as he emphatically punctuated an 88-68 lead.

“I just see him go, and once I see him running, I know he’s looking for it,” Rodriguez said. “… I just see him. It’s a natural thing.”

Published on January 23, 2015 at 2:10 am

Contact Chris: cjlibona@syr.edu | @ChrisLibonati