Bold predictions make headlines, but as journalists, we aim to stick to facts and let readers formulate their own opinions.

This is an especially valuable goal in sports writing, where there’s more data than ever before and if you present that to readers, a few conclusions become readily apparent without stating the obvious. Take for example, the Miami Hurricanes, who just advanced to their first Final Four on Sunday when they vanquished Texas with a dominant final 10 minutes of the second half in Kansas City.

All season, we knew that the Miami Hurricanes had an elite offense.

The data told us that was true. They entered the NCAA Tournament 10th in KenPom Adjusted Offensive Efficiency, spent the whole season in the top 20 in that metric, and head to the Final Four ranked 5th. They are the best shooting team left in the field, too, at 48.6% from the floor and 37% from deep.

The eye test told us this was true, too.

Miami runs some of the best offense in the country. Jim Larrañaga was one of the early apostles of 4-out, 1-in modern offense and his team uses all manner of actions, from dribble handoffs to stagger screens to an assortment of beautifully executed pin downs, to free up Miami’s marvelous guards, and they get easier looks at the rim with smartly timed and well-executed backdoor actions, too.

Plus, when things break down, the Hurricanes have probably the nation’s best tough-shot maker in Isaiah Wong, whose ability to make guarded looks consistently will make him millions next season in the NBA.

The data told us Miami could score, and that’s why, when they trailed Texas, a top-10 KenPom defense, by double-digits with just over 10 minutes to play Sunday, there was no reason to panic. The Hurricanes are always a tough make and a great set from a 5-0 run. When you can score in bunches, you can win in March.

It’s not just offense, though, that makes the Hurricanes great.

When in February, we at Saturday Road made a rare bold prediction and declared that Miami was “Final Four Good,” there were 2 things in addition to brilliant offense that sold us on this Miami team ending its season in Houston on the game’s biggest stage.

The first reason was that this Miami team was better and more balanced than the group that lost a halftime lead against Kansas in last season’s Elite 8.

Norchad Omier gives Miami a different dimension. You will hear all week that he is “just 6-7,” and you’ll likely hear proclamations that his height will limit his effectiveness against UConn’s monsters in the middle, Adama Sanogo and Donovan Clingan. Make no mistake, UConn’s bigs are sensational. Omier? He’s magnificent, too.

Omier is a monster, a hometown product who was lightly recruited due to the perception he was too small but came home after Miami rightly admitted their mistake in not signing him in the first place.

“We could have done a much better job with that evaluation, that’s for sure,” Larrañaga told me after Miami beat preseason No. 1 North Carolina in Chapel Hill last month. “The good news is he was receptive when we admitted it,” he offered with a laugh.

Omier averages 13.3 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, and he’s posted double-doubles in 3 of Miami’s 4 NCAA Tournament wins. The lone game he didn’t have a double-double came Sunday afternoon against Texas, when he went for 11 points and 9 rebounds and added 2 steals, including a vital one late to help seal the win. With Omier at the center of things, Miami is a team that rebounds better than their size suggests, especially offensively, where Miami grabs their misses 31.7% of the time, which ranks 74th in the country, a tremendous mark for an undersized basketball team.

The other thing that makes Miami so good?

Experience. That starts at the top, with Larrañaga, who bucked the smarmy dismissal of his hiring, perceived by some as a veteran coach merely looking to “retire” in Coral Gables, almost immediately when he took over in 2011. Larrañaga reached the Sweet 16 in just his second year and hasn’t looked back since. He’s reached 6 NCAA Tournaments, won 3 ACC regular-season titles and 1 ACC Tournament, advanced twice to the Elite 8 and now, a Final Four.

With over 700 wins as a Division I head coach, Larrañaga will be by far the most experienced, battle-tested head coach in the Final Four, and the only one who has been there before, with George Mason in 2006.

Miami’s experience extends to guard, where Wong, the ACC Player of the Year per the coaches, and the expensive but worth NIL find Nijel Pack, give the Canes the best 1-2 punch in the backcourt in Houston.

Finally, the Hurricanes have one of the nation’s best-kept secrets in Jordan Miller, the wafer-thin 6-7 wing who does everything: score, rebound, defend, pass — and does it all efficiently.

Miller grades out as Miami’s 2nd-best defender, behind Wong, and on Sunday, he played a perfect basketball game: 27 points, 7-for-7 on field goals, 13-for-13 on free throws, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and a steal in the best individual performance in the Elite 8. How good was Miller’s performance against Texas? Does Christian Laettner ring a bell? It was Laettner good.

Miller is the one guy that, even with a week to prepare, UConn has no obvious matchup it should feel comfortable with. The thing is, that’s not a UConn problem as much as it is an “everyone” problem: Miller is too tall and strong and athletic for your best guard to deal with and too quick and athletic for your talented big. And if you have a wing who can match his height and athleticism, Miller is a better basketball player: shooter, defender, rebounder, passer — than your guy 9 times out of 10. Playing the final games of a storied career, Miller is the yin to Wong’s yang.

So yes, it turned out, Miami was “Final Four good,” a bold prediction backed by data and now, by results.

Here’s another bold prediction: Before you hand UConn its 5th national championship, remember that Miami isn’t just Final Four good. They are good enough to win the whole thing.