TicketsJan. 30, 2006
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GAME FACTS
UC vs. USF
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2006
Time: 8:00 p.m. EST
Site: Fifth Third Arena (13,176), Cincinnati, Ohio
Records:
Cincinnati : 14-7, 3-4 BIG EAST
USF: 6-13, 0-6 BIG EAST
TV: WXIX-TV 19 (Jeff Piecoro, Anthony Buford)
Radio: WLW-AM 700 (Dan Hoard, Chuck Machock)
CINCINNATI PROBABLE STARTERS 2005-06 Statistics
F 30 Cedric McGowan 6-6 Jr. Miami, Fla. 8.3 pts, 7.0 reb, 1.0 ast
F 14 Eric Hicks 6-6 Sr. Greensboro, N.C. 14.4 pts, 9.5 reb, 3.5 blk
G 21 James White 6-7 Sr. Washington, D.C. 17.0 pts, 5.0 reb, 2.1 ast
G 1 Chadd Moore 6-2 Sr. Huntsville, Ala. 3.1 pts, 1.7 reb, 1.4 ast
G 3 Devan Downey 5-10 Fr. Chester, S.C. 12.7 pts, 2.3 reb, 4.0 ast
USF PROBABLE STARTERS 2005-06 Statistics
F 3 Melvin Buckley 6-6 Jr. Chicago, Ill. 12.4 pts, 6.0 reb, 1.0 ast
F 15 Mattis McHugh 6-6 Jr. North Lauderdale, Fla. 10.3 pts, 7.7 reb, 2.2 blk
C 44 Solomon Jones 6-10 Sr. Mount Dora, Fla. 13.2 pts, 10.1 reb, 3.3 blk
G 23 Collin Dennis 6-2 So. N. Richland Hills, Texas 3.5 pts, 1.7 reb, 0.8 ast
G 25 James Holmes 6-2 Sr. Ypsilanti, Mich. 18.3 pts, 2.7 reb, 2.3 ast
SETTING THE SCENE: The University of Cincinnati will try to end a two-game losing streak when the Bearcats host USF on Tuesday, Jan. 31 at Fifth Third Arena. UC enters the 8 p.m. EST contest with a 14-7 record and a 3-4 ledger in BIG EAST play. The Bearcats dropped a 76-57 decision at No. 17 Georgetown on Saturday, their fifth setback in the last six games. USF, 6-13, brings an eight-game losing streak into the contest, and is seeking its first-ever win in BIG EAST play. The Bulls, like the Bearcats, are making their debut in the BIG EAST this year. USF has been idle since last Tuesday's 49-46 loss to No. 4 Villanova.
STORY LINES:
Cincinnati has won all five previous games vs. USF in Fifth Third Arena. The Bearcats have a 229-32 record (.877) in their 17 seasons in the building.
USF brings an eight-game losing streak into Tuesday's game, but the Bulls took two of those contests into overtime. Five of those losses, including each of the last three, have been by six or fewer points.
Cincinnati is ranked No. 4 nationally in fewest turnovers committed (11.8).
Cincinnati and USF have played two common opponents; Syracuse and Georgetown. Cincinnati lost to the then-No. 24 Orange, 77-58, on Jan. 14 in Cincinnati, and dropped a 76-57 decision at Georgetown last Saturday. USF lost at Syracuse, 63-57, on Jan. 8 and was edged at Georgetown, 50-47, on Jan. 17.
Eric Hicks, the leading shot blocker in the BIG EAST Conference, enters the game with 73 blocks. He has already eclipsed his 2004-05 total of 72, which was the fifth-highest single season tally in UC history. Hicks needs five more blocks to surpass the fourth place single season total of 78 set by Kenyon Martin in 1998-99.
UC-USF: Tuesday's game will be the first between the two as members of the BIG EAST Conference. Cincinnati holds an 18-4 lead in the all-time series. USF snapped the Bearcats' 14-game winning streak in the series with an 80-68 win in the quarterfinals of last year's Conference USA Tournament.
LAST SEASON: Jason Maxiell's 21 points and 12 rebounds were not enough as No. 11 seed USF upset the No. 3 seed Bearcats in the quarterfinals of last year's C-USA Tournament in Memphis. UC cut a 14-point deficit to six points with five minutes remaining in the game but USF went on a 9-0 run to clinch the game. Terrence Leather led the Bulls with 21 points. Cincinnati defeated USF, 74-48, on Jan. 27 in Tampa in the regular season meeting. UC took an early double-digit lead with a 16-3 scoring run and was never threatened. UC held USF to .259 shooting and leading scorer Terrence Leather scoreless. Eric Hicks led the Bearcats with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
LAST TIME IN CINCINNATI: Tony Bobbitt scored 26 points to lead Cincinnati to an 80-67 win over USF on Feb. 11, 2004 in Fifth Third Arena. UC took command with a 9-0 scoring run midway through the first half. Brian Swift led USF with 23 points.
COMPUTERS LIKE THE CATS: The Bearcats have been a Top 20 team most of the season in the computer ratings. UC was ranked No. 26 in both the RPI and the Sagarin Index following Sunday's games.
TOUGH SCHEDULE: One reason for Cincinnati's lofty rankings in the Sagrin and RPI is the team's demanding schedule. The Bearcats were rated No. 6 in the RPI's strength of schedule rankings following Sunday's games. The slate does not get any easier as four of the remaining nine regular season opponents are ranked in this week's Top 25.
NOTES FROM THE GEORGETOWN GAME:
Cincinnati committed a season-low four turnovers, tying the fourth-lowest total in UC history. The effort came on the heels of the Bearcats' season-high 25 turnovers committed in the Jan. 25 loss at Louisville.
James White's 22 points marked his 20th double-figure scoring performance in 21 games. White upped his career point total to 1,091. The Florida transfer topped the 900 mark in points scored at Cincinnati (909).
Eric Hicks added to his BIG EAST-leading blocks totals with four rejections, giving him 31 blocks in his last seven games.
Hicks climbed into 41st place in career scoring with 1,023 points. UC's 20 first-half points was a season low.
HICKS DOUBLES UP: Eric Hicks is averaging a double-double (15.8 points, 10.8 rebounds) over his last 11 games. The 6-6 senior has posted six double-doubles in his last nine games. Hicks turned in his eighth double-double of the season and 21st of his career when he scored 15 points and grabbed a career-high tying 17 rebounds vs. Louisville (1/25/06). Hicks averaged 21.0 points, 13.5 rebounds and 5.5 blocks in a pair of victories to earn BIG EAST co-Player of the Week honors on Jan. 9. Hicks notched a triple double with 22 points, 12 rebounds and a school record-tying 10 blocked shots in a victory over Marquette (1/7/06). Hicks' rebounding and shot-blocking prowess make him a candidate for BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year honors.
HICKS MOVING UP BLOCKS LIST: Eric Hicks, with 73 blocks this season, has already eclipsed his last season's total of 72 and has the fifth-highest single season blocks total. He can move into fourth place with five more rejections. Hicks has moved into third place at Cincinnati in career blocks with 216, trailing Kenyon Martin (292) and Jason Maxiell (254). Hicks, who blocked a school record-tying 10 shots in the Jan. 7 win over Marquette, has blocked 31 shots in his last seven games. He has blocked at least one shot in 50 of his last 53 games. Hicks is ranked fifth nationally in blocks in the most recent NCAA statistics.
WHITE CELEBRATES HOMECOMING: James White, a native of the Washington, D.C. area, celebrated his return home by scoring 22 points in the Bearcats' loss last Saturday. The 6-7 senior meshed 8-of-9 free throws and had four dunks. White, who has scored in double figures in all but one game this season, leads UC in scoring with his 17.0-point average. He has also been tops in scoring consistency, tallying 17, 18 or 19 points in 11 of his 21. The production is a significant boost for White, who averaged 10.2 points last season and entered the campaign with an 8.1 career scoring average.
DOWNEY PLAYS BIG FOR THE BEARCATS: Devan Downey is attracting attention for Freshman All-American honors, primarily because he is not playing like one. The Bearcats' 5-10 point guard leads the team in assists (4.0) and steals (2.3) and is third in scoring (12.7). Downey ranks 44th nationally in steals and has recorded three or more steals in 10 different games. He has had the following noteworthy performances:
On Dec. 10, Downey keyed UC's 92-83 win over Vanderbilt by scoring 18 points, 16 in the second half, and recording four steals and a pair of assists, earning BIG EAST Conference Rookie of the Week honors.
On Dec. 14 vs. Ohio, Downey scored a career-high 24 points, shooting 10-of-16 from the field, and had five assists and four steals.
On Dec. 30 vs. North Carolina A&T, he passed for a career-high 11 assists and scored 13 points for his first career double-double.
On Jan. 19 vs. Xavier, he scored 22 points and drilled a clutch 3-pointer in the final 30 seconds which helped send the game into overtime. He also had five rebounds, five assists and three steals.
On Jan. 22, Downey keyed the win over Rutgers with 21 points, four assists and four steals.
Downey averaged 14.7 points, 5.1 assists and 2.1 steals during UC's 10-game winning streak.
OTHER BEARCAT BITS:
The Bearcats have averaged 59.0 points and shot .344 from the field in their last five losses.
Cincinnati set a school and BIG EAST Conference record with 18 blocked shots in the Jan. 7 win at Marquette, topping the old mark of 15 set by the 1999-00 team vs. Iowa State. Eric Hicks tied a UC record with 10 blocks and James White had a career-best four rejections vs. Marquette.
Cincinnati has held nine opponents under the .400 mark in field goal percentage, including two under 33 percent. UC has posted sub-.400 defensive field goal percentages in six of the last eight seasons.
The Bearcats have scored 80 or more points in eight games this season, topping the 100-point mark twice. UC tallied 105 points vs. Tennessee Tech on Dec. 17, then matched that with 105 points vs. North Carolina A&T on Dec. 30.
UC shot a season-high .563 vs. Tennessee Tech on Dec. 17 and a .552 effort vs. North Carolina A&T on Dec. 30.
Cincinnati has had at least five double-figure scorers seven times during the course of the season. Six Bearcats reached double figures in scoring in the Dec. 30 win over North Carolina A&T.
UC recorded a season-high 25 assists vs. North Carolina A&T on Dec. 30.
The Bearcats set season highs for rebounds (53) and rebounding margin (+18) in the Jan. 4 win vs. DePaul, while committing just six turnovers.
HICKS BEGINS SCORING ASCENT: Eric Hicks, who recently became the 43rd player in University of Cincinnati history to top the 1,000-point mark in career scoring, has begun his ascent up of UC's career scoring chart. The senior is currently No. 41 with 1,023 points, three points out of 40th place.
BEARCATS TAKE LEAGUE HONORS: Eric Hicks was named BIG EAST co-Player of the Week on Jan. 9 after averaging 21.0 points, 13.5 rebounds and 5.5 blocks in wins over DePaul and Marquette. Hicks previously earned BIG EAST Honor Roll recognition on Dec. 5 and Jan. 2.
Devan Downey earned the BIG EAST Conference Rookie of the Week in back-to-back weeks (Dec. 10, Dec. 17).
James White was named to the BIG EAST Honor Roll on Dec. 19 and Dec. 26.
MORE TROUBLE FOR BENCH: The depth-challenged Bearcats received another blow when Scott Benken suffered an elbow injury in practice requiring surgery that will sideline him for the remainder of the season. Benken, a non-scholarship player at Wake Forest in 2002-03 and 2003-04 prior to transferring to UC to pursue his pharmacy degree, joined the Bearcats as a walk-on on Jan. 17. Two members of the Bearcats' football program, Connor Barwin and Angelo Craig, joined the team as walk-ons on Jan. 11. Barwin, a tight end in football, has been the most productive in games to date. The 6-4 true freshman has averaged 10.7 minutes over the last three games and had four points and four rebounds vs. Rutgers (1/22/06).
STREAK BUSTERS: Cincinnati has been a streak-buster this season. On Dec. 10, UC stopped Vanderbilt's unbeaten start at five games with a 92-83 win over the Commodores, and also snapped Vandy's 28-game home non-conference win streak.
UC halted Ohio's 4-0 start with an 86-58 win on Dec. 14.
On Dec. 17, UC ended Tennessee Tech's six-game win streak with a 105-62 victory.
UC's win at Marquette on Jan. 7 snapped MU's home winning streak at seven and overall win streak at five.
BLOUNT RETURNS: Corie Blount, the starting center on the University of Cincinnati basketball teams which reached the NCAA Final Four in 1992 and Elite Eight in 1993, returned to the Bearcat bench as interim assistant coach in early December. Blount is an 11-year veteran of the National Basketball Association who averaged 9.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots during his two seasons as a Bearcat.
LEAGUE DEBUT STREAK ENDANGERED: Cincinnati's streak of winning a conference championship each time the Bearcats have joined a new league is in jeopardy. 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 1975-76, the regular season and tournament titles in the Great Midwest Conference in 1991-92, and the regular season and tourney championships of Conference USA in 1995-96.
TICKET UPDATE: Cincinnati's Feb. 6 home contest vs. rival Louisville is a sellout. The only opportunity for the general public to purchase tickets for this game would occur if the UC students do not pick up all of their allotment of tickets. Tickets for the remaining home games can be purchased on-line at www.UCBearcats.com, by phone (513-556-CATS) using a major credit card, or in person at the UC Athletic Ticket Office at One Edwards Center, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Bearcats hit the road for the third time in a four-game span for Saturday's (Feb. 4) game at No. 11 West Virginia. The 12 noon game will be televised by ESPN Regional and aired in Cincinnati on WXIX-TV 19. UC returns to Fifth Third Arena to host Louisville on Monday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m. (ESPN2).