TicketsNov. 25, 2006
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Deonta Vaughn scored 19 points and grabbed a game-high seven rebounds to lead Cincinnati to a 60-50 win over Central Michigan in Fifth Third Arena on Saturday night.
The win upped UC's record to 4-1 and came despite 29 turnovers by the Bearcats, tied for the second-most in school history. The UC defense held CMU (2-2) to 34.7 percent shooting and posted a 36-16 edge in rebounding.
"Somebody just told me we didn't set a record for turnovers, and it makes me feel a lot better," said head coach Mick Cronin. "It isn't a record I ever want to beat, but we came awfully close. Bottom line is that we won the game. We played defense for forty minutes, and our defense in the second half was the best of the year."
John Williamson added 11 points and seven rebounds and Cedric McGowan had 12 points and six boards.
Giordan Watson led the Chippewas with 23 points. He was the only CMU player in double-figures.
The first half was a sloppy one for both teams, as they combined for 26 turnovers and just 53 points despite shooting a combined 49 percent from the field.
Vaughn led UC, fresh off his 33-point performance last time out. He had 13 points and three assists in the opening stanza. Watson led the Chippewas with 11 points and three assists.
Neither team posted more than a three point lead in the opening 15 minutes. There were eight lead changes and three ties in this stretch. After a second-straight basket by Justin Blevins tied the game at 18-18, Vaughn keyed a 7-0 run by the Bearcats. He had an offensive rebound and score followed by a three-pointer to cap the run and give UC a 25-18 edge with 3:54 left.
CMU scored the next two baskets to close within three, but Vaughn hit his third triple of half and then found Branden Miller for a trey as the clock expired to stake the Bearcats to a 31-22 halftime lead.
UC shot 55.6 percent from the field in the half, but committed 15 turnovers. After Vaughn's 13, Williamson had seven points and four rebounds. UC held a 13-6 edge in rebounding.
The Bearcats continued their run to start the second half, scoring the first seven points and 11 of the first 13 to take a 42-24 lead less than six minutes in. Between the end of the first half and beginning of the second half, CMU went eight minutes between field goals.
After that the Chippewas got hot from behind the arc. After making just one of their first nine attempts, they hit three in the course of a 13-2 run that cut the UC advantage to 44-37 with 9:13 left.
The teams then traded baskets for the next six minutes, with UC continuing to negate its huge rebounding edge by committing turnovers.
Vaughn finally regained a double-digit lead for the Bearcats by hitting a driving lay-up and then making a steal and lay-up for a 56-45 edge with 2:59 left.
UC's final turnover led to a three-point play by Watson that closed CMU to within eight with 54 seconds left, but that was as close as the Chippewas got.
The Bearcats continue their seven-game homestand when they host Oakland on Wednesday, Nov. 29 at 8 p.m.