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Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball Arkansas-Pine Bluff Big 12 season opener

Posted on by Kennedy
Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball Arkansas-Pine Bluff Big 12 season opener

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After a Midnight Madness atmosphere at the CareSource Charity Classic against Ohio State over two weeks ago, the University of Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team plays a game that counts on Monday night, facing Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Fifth Third Arena.

After the high of beating the Buckeyes in a charity event and the low of losing to Pitt in a controlled “secret” matchup, Wes Miller is as excited as many fans to see what the men in red and black do have to offer in 2024. 25.

The Bearcats were picked as the No. 6 seed out of 16 teams in the Big 12 and the five teams ahead of them are all in the top 10 of the top 25 in both the AP and USA TODAY preseason polls. Texas Tech, BYU and Kansas State also received votes in both polls and Arizona State received votes in the AP count.

“I’m always grateful when I leave the tunnel I train in Cincinnati,” Miller said. “There are a lot of people who care about it. Every time I run out of that tunnel I don't take it for granted. I appreciate the people sitting in their seats and yelling and cheering us on.”

Come on, feel the noise

According to Miller, Fifth Third Arena is one of the best environments in college basketball. At his weekly press conference, he implored fans to continue to be vocal in their support for this season but to make it even better.

New Cincinnati Bearcats forward Dillon Mitchell, who played here for Texas last January, says the crowd can definitely be a factor for an opposing team unfamiliar with the territory.

“I’m excited to be able to play in front of these fans,” Mitchell said. “I tell y’all, when they’re out there and they’re loud, it’s scary for the opposing team. They will help us win games this year.”

Is Day Day Thomas commonplace for the Cincinnati Bearcats?

The senior point guard, who started all 35 games last season, injured his foot before he was scheduled to fly to Kansas City to represent UC at Big 12 Media Days (Oct. 22). He has since returned to basketball activities, but did not participate in Pitt's Secret Scrimmage.

“We’re just not going to go from zero to 100,” Miller said. “He shoots. I don't know if he will miss the time or not. In college basketball you have to have depth. That was important to us when we put together our squad. We have depth. There are a number of people who do that. “Together we should be able to fill a void, but there's no doubt I'll feel a lot better when Day Day plays.”

Three keys for the Cincinnati Bearcats to beat the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions

1. Eliminate the problems early and play with controlled chaos

It would be somewhat normal for an early game to be sloppy. UC should expect sloppiness early on and then adapt to the environment. Miller would prefer to play faster this season, so the expectation should be to wear out the opponent, not become exhausted. What's confusing the Golden Lions appears to be just another day at the office for the Bearcats. However, the UAPB team averaged over 80 points per game last year, so it's not like they're messing around with it for 30 seconds per possession.

2. Never take an opponent lightly

As CBS insider Jon Rothstein often writes early in the season, losing a game to someone you essentially paid to lose can be the “epitome of brutality.” Nine of Pine Bluff's first 11 games are road pay days, including games at Tulsa, USF, Kansas State, Texas Tech and Texas. If you don't want to be included in the “Buster Douglas beats Mike Tyson” category, take care of business.

3. Leave the dish unassisted

With Tyler McKinley already out this year with a knee injury and Thomas suffering a previous foot injury, healthy bodies are essential. Crucial to a team's success is the ability to leave the field on their own two feet.

Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions

Tip: 7 p.m

TV/Radio: ESPN+/700WLW

Series: UC leads 5-0 (Bearcats last won 105-49 on November 27, 2018)

Arkansas-Pine Bluff (UAPB) Scouting Report

Record: 13-18 (8-10 SWAC) last season

trainer: Solomon Bozeman (fourth season, 30-63)

Attack: 80.1 ppg last season

Defense: 81.8 ppg last season

Planned starting lineup

(position, size, statistics)

Robert Lewis (F, 6'9″, 4.2 ppg last season)

Klemen Vuga (F, 6'9″, 2.3 ppg at Monmouth last season)

Zach Reinhart (G, 6'6″, 1.9 ppg last season)

Trejon Ware (G, 5'9″, 3.4 ppg last season)

Christian Moore (G, 5'11″, 1.3 ppg at North Texas last season)

Cincinnati Bearcats Scouting Report

Record: 22-15 (7-11 Big 12) last season

Trainer: Wes Miller (fourth season, 63-43 at UC, 248-178 overall)

Attack: 74.7 pages

defense: 68.2 pages per minute

Planned starting lineup

(position, size, statistics)

Dillon Mitchell (F. 6'8″, 9.6 ppg at Texas last season)

Aziz Bandaogo (C, 7', 6.6 ppg last season)

Simas Lukošius (G, 6'8″, 11.8 ppg last season)

Dan Skillings Jr. (G, 6'6″, 12.9 ppg last season)

Jizzle James (G, 6'3″, 8.8 ppg last season)

Players to watch

Monmouth transfer Klemen Vuga is a 6-foot-2, 240-pound forward who averaged 9.5 points and 5.3 rebounds two seasons ago at Monmouth and scored a game-high 29 points against North Carolina A&T. He was part of the 2021-22 Monmouth squad that defeated UC 61-59 in November of that season, but did not play.

The Bearcats saw Dillon Mitchell go a perfect 6-for-6 from the field and finish with 12 points and seven rebounds against Ohio State. They also made 10 of their 26 3-point shots, with Simas Lukošius and Jizzle James each hitting a pair.

James appears to have improved defensively, which will help the team.

“To get to the next level you have to play on both sides,” James said. “In this conference (Big 12), you have to be a dog on defense. This is the best defensive conference.”

If Thomas doesn't play, look for Bradley transfer Connor Hickman and holdover CJ Fredrick to get significant minutes. Hickman averaged 14.5 points for Bradley in the NIT and 14 against UC. Last season he shot over 40% from three-point range, while Fredrick shot almost 43%.

Rankings

NCAA NET: Cincinnati No. 37 last season, UAPB No. 328

KenPom.com: Cincinnati is No. 17, UAPB No. 355

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