So with Rivard graduated, the logical step seems to be to pencil Miller into the lineup where Rivard was just one season ago. Even the national media—including the likes of NBC Sports and CBS Sports—have pegged Miller as the “replacement” sharpshooter, as Rivard 2.0.

But Miller doesn’t see it that way.

“Laurent was an incredible shooter, an incredible player…[and] I hope to be able to shoot it as well as Laurent,” Miller said. “But I think my game is a little bit different [than his], I take it off the dribble a bit more.”

Amaker echoed the sophomore’s sentiments, citing Miller’s ball-handling capabilities as a key difference between the two marksmen.

“[He’s] not going to be Laurent, though everyone [thinks so]—they’re just not the same player,” Amaker said. “Corbin can put the ball down, and he’s more of a true guard: he can do things off the dribble [and] can play point guard for us.”

While Rivard would often wait a foot or so behind the three-point line with his hands up, ready to catch and shoot, Miller has added to his repertoire a sharp dribble to his left or right, in an attempt to shake a defender and create a better look at the basket. And while Rivard rarely drove to the hoop, Miller’s ability to penetrate will enable him to create opportunities for others as well, finding them on the drive.

But Miller’s central asset for the team will be his ability to stretch the floor. With a stacked frontline as well as a talented pair of ball-handlers in senior wing Wesley Saunders and junior point guard and co-captain Siyani Chambers—whose strengths are most evident when they penetrate the paint—Miller’s shooting will force the defense to the perimeter, opening up the inside game for his teammates.

While just over two months ago Miller and Chambers had never met or spoken with one another, the guards have said that their transition to playing together has been seamless. And with the two most frequent recipients of Chambers’s perimeter swings—Rivard and Brandyn Curry ’14—graduated, Miller will likely step in as the go-to gunner receiving the junior’s bullet passes, a role that both Miller and Amaker say he is more than ready to take on.

“Corbin’s going to be a key guy,” Amaker explained. “We need him to be a terrific shooter. He’s going to play a vital role for our team, without a doubt.”

“BUILDING BACK”

When Miller arrived back on U.S. soil in March 2014, he had barely picked up a basketball in almost two years and, according to Amaker, was 20 pounds lighter than he had been the last time he had stepped on the hardwood.

Miller’s roommate Nathan Wall, a linebacker on the football team who went on his mission at the same time as Miller, described just how difficult it is for athletes to keep their conditioning while on service trips. While they get 30 minutes to exercise every morning, there is no equipment to train with, rendering it difficult for them to maintain their body strength.

“You get out of shape really fast,” Wall explained.

So now, back on the floor of Lavietes Pavilion, Miller is working—every practice, every conditioning session—to get back into the rhythm he was in his freshman year, when he tallied those 17 points against Penn.

“He’s building back up,” Amaker said. “He’s worked hard to get to this point and so far so good.”

For Miller’s teammates, his marksmanship remains unquestioned. Despite the many months away from the court, his shot “looks exactly the same” according to co-captain Steve Moundou-Missi, and regaining his stroke has simply been a matter of “muscle memory” according to senior center Kenyatta Smith.