TicketsNov. 1, 2005
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Cincinnati vs. Hillsdale
Date: Thursday, Nov. 3, 2005
Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
Site: Fifth Third Arena (13,176), Cincinnati, Ohio
Records:
Cincinnati ................ 25-8 in 2004-05
Hillsdale................. 15-13 in 2004-05
TV: None.
Radio: None.
Tickets: Available, $22, $15, youth 12-and-under $15, 513-556-CATS or www.UCBearcats.com.
Series: First meeting.
The Coaches:
Andy Kennedy (UAB'91)
At Cincinnati: 1st year
Overall: 1st year
ED DOUMA (Calvin `66)
At Hillsdale: 115-80 (8th year)
Overall: 531-274 (31st year)
CINCINNATI PROBABLE STARTERS 2004-05 Statistics
F 30 Cedric McGowan, 6-6 Jr., Miami, Fla......... *15.1 pts, 5.9 reb, 1.1 ast
F 14 Eric Hicks, 6-6 Sr., Greensboro, N.C.......... 13.7 pts, 9.0 reb, 2.3 blk
F-G 33 Armein Kirkland, 6-8 Sr., Tyler, Texas........ 10.3 pts, 4.3 reb, 2.5 ast
G 21 James White, 6-7 Sr., Kensington, Md........ 10.2 pts, 4.8 reb, 3.1 ast
G 13 Jihad Muhammad, 5-11 Sr., Plainfield, N.J.. 10.4 pts, 3.0 reb, 2.7 ast
*stats from junior college
HILLSDALE PROBABLE STARTERS 2004-05 Statistics
F 33 John Farr, 6-8 Jr., Marietta, Ohio................ 10.7 pts, 5.1 reb, 1.7 blk
F 23 Tim Homan, 6-4 So., Celina, Ohio.............. 12.6 pts, 4.4 reb, 1.7 ast
G 4 John Hamood, 5-11 Sr., Dearborn, Mich....... 6.2 pts, 2.9 reb, 2.9 ast
G 10 Drew Powell, 6-1 Jr., Rockford, Mich.......... 10.8 pts, 3.8 reb, 2.1 ast
G 11 Cory Coe, 6-2 Sr., Williamston, Mich.......... 12.5 pts, 3.3 reb. 1.2 ast
SETTING THE SCENE: The Bearcats will get their first test against outside competition when they host Hillsdale (Mich.) College in a preseason contest on Thursday, Nov. 3. The 7 p.m. exhibition at Fifth Third Arena will mark the debut of Andy Kennedy as head coach, as well as the first game in Cincinnati uniforms for nine of the 15 members of the 2005-06 UC squad.
ABOUT HILLSDALE: The Chargers are an NCAA Division II school that plays in the Great Lakes Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, along with Northern Kentucky, a perennial UC preseason opponent, Kentucky Wesleyan and Southern Indiana, who also have appeared on Cincinnati exhibition schedules. Hillsdale, 15-13 last season, is coached by Ed Douma, who has compiled a 531-274 record in 30 years as a head coach, 115-80 over the last seven seasons at Hillsdale.
FIFTH YEAR FOR DIVISION II: Prior to 2001-02, preseason basketball games featured touring foreign teams and amateur club squads from the U.S. A new NCAA rule was implemented to permit a Division I team to schedule exhibition contests against Division II or Division III teams. UC athletics director Bob Goin was instrumental in the new rule through his work on the NCAA Championships/Competition Cabinet.
UC IN THE BIG EAST: Cincinnati makes its debut as a member of the expanded BIG EAST Conference this season after playing the past 10 years in Conference USA. In the preseason polls of both the league's coaches and media, the Bearcats were picked to finish ninth among the 16 teams. Senior Eric Hicks was an honorable mention selection to the BIG EAST preseason all-league team. The Bearcats have compiled a record of 131-96 for a .577 winning percentage against the current BIG EAST membership.
CONFERENCE DEBUTS GOOD FOR UC: The Bearcats can expect to enjoy success in their inaugural season in the BIG EAST, if the past is any precursor. Every time Cincinnati has begun play in a new conference, it has claimed the championship in that initial year. UC captured the Buckeye Athletic Association title in 1925-26, the Mid-American Conference championship in 1946-47, the Missouri Valley Conference crown in 1957-58, the Metro Conference Tournament championship in the league's first season of play in 1975-76, the regular season and tournament title in the Great Midwest Conference in 1991-92, and the regular season and tourney championships of Conference USA in 1995-96.
NINTH-WINNINGEST PROGRAM: Cincinnati has been college basketball's ninth-winningest program since the turn of the century. Over the past six years, the Bearcats have compiled a 152-45 record for an .772 percentage.
Cincinnati's 152 wins are the ninth-most among Division I teams over this period.
Cincinnati has won 25 or more games nine of the last 10 seasons.
The Bearcats have won a conference regular season and/or tournament title in 12 of the past 14 seasons, and six times during this period have claimed both during the same season.
UC's 14 straight NCAA Tournament appearances is the third-longest active streak in Division I, trailing only Arizona (21) and Kansas (17).
ERIC'S SUMMER TRIP: Eric Hicks did not have your typical summer vacation. The Bearcats' senior forward helped the United States to the Gold Medal at the World University Games in Izmir, Turkey. Hicks was one of 15 players invited to the USA Basketball Trials in Colorado Springs to participate in tryouts for the team in late July. He made the 12-player roster for the games and travelled to Turkey in August. Hicks averaged 6.6 points and 3.1 rebounds at the games, shooting .576 from the field. He had a team-leading 24 points in the 117-61 win over China.
VETERAN TEAM: The Bearcats will open the season with a combined total of 145 games of starting experience. For comparison, last year's team brought 160 games of starting experience into the 2004-05 campaign. The 2003-04 team had 108 games of starting experience while the 2002-03 team began with only 59 career starts.
105th CAMPAIGN: The 2005-06 season will be Cincinnati's 105th year of basketball competition. The school has compiled a 1,499-855 record for a .637 percentage.
BEARCATS UNBEATABLE IN 5/3 ARENA: Cincinnati enters its 17th season in Fifth Third Arena at Shoemaker Center with a 220-29 record a .884 winning percentage. UC is 56-6 in Fifth Third over the last four seasons, and compiled a 73-7 mark vs. Conference USA teams during its 10 years in that league.
BEARCATS NO. 1 AMONG CONFERENCE RULERS: Cincinnati shares with Valparaiso the distinction of having won the most conference regular season championships over the last 11 seasons. The Bearcats have been regular season champions nine times in the past 11 seasons, eight in Conference USA and once in the Great Midwest Conference.
PROMOTED ASSISTANTS FIND SUCCESS AT UC: Andy Kennedy becomes the fourth Cincinnati assistant coach to be promoted to the head coaching position. His predecessors have found success. The most celebrated of these was Ed Jucker, who led UC to the NCAA national championship after becoming head coach in 1960-61.
1st Year
Coach Replaced Season Record Career Years
George Smith............ John Wiethe......... 1952-53......... 11. -13 154 -56 8
Ed Jucker.................. George Smith....... 1960-61......... 27. -3 113 -28 5
Tay Baker.................. Ed Jucker............. 1965-66......... 21. -7 125 -60 7
UC'S DEFENSIVE REPUTATION: Cincinnati teams have earned a reputation for their defense and rebounding emphasis, and the success of last year's team is evidence of this. UC held its foes to a .373 field goal percentage to rank second in the nation. The Bearcats have held their opponents to sub-.400 shooting in eight of the past 10 seasons and have been annually ranked among the nation's teams in fewest points allowed.
TICKET UPDATE: Single game tickets to all University of Cincinnati men's basketball home games were put on sale to the general public beginning Tuesday, Nov. 1.
The tickets may be purchased by phone (513-556-CATS) or online via UC's athletic web site: www.UCBearcats.com, as well as in person at the Athletic Ticket Office at One Edwards Center. Ticket office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Single game tickets are priced at $22, $15 for the corner sections of Fifth Third Arena and $15 for youth 12 and under. Groups of 15 or more may qualify for a discounted ticket of $15 to selected games.
Season tickets will continue to be sold. Season ticket prices are priced at $291, $310 and $425. A donation to UCATS is required for the $310 and $425 season tickets.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Bearcats play their second preseason contest on Saturday, Nov. 12, hosting Northern Kentucky at 7 p.m. Cincinnati opens the 2005-06 regular season hosting Murray State on Saturday, Nov. 19. Tipoff for the opener is at 7 p.m.