TicketsDec. 18, 2007
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The Cincinnati Bearcats (4-5, 0-0 BIG EAST) renew their rivalry with former long-time conference opponent Memphis on Wednesday, Dec. 19 at 7 p.m. The Tigers (8-0, 0-0 C-USA) are riding an eight-game winning streak and come into Fifth Third Arena on as the No. 2-ranked team in both the Associated Press and USATodaypolls. The game marks the first time since Villanova on Feb. 23, 2006, UC has hosted a team ranked so high. Cincinnati has a 36-29 edge in the series, but Memphis has won three of the last five meetings, including the last two straight. The game will be aired live on ESPN2.
LOOKIN' FOR SOME HOME COOKIN': When the Bearcats hit the road after the South Carolina Upstate game on Nov. 26 with a 4-2 start to its home schedule, Cincinnati was hoping for better than three straight road losses. UC returns to Fifth Third Arena vs. Memphis where it owns a record of 249-45 (.847 winning percentage) in 19 seasons at Fifth Third Arena at Shoemaker Center. Head coach Mick Cronin especially prefers coaching at home as he owns a 53-16 career mark at home and a 14-10 record at UC.
Memphis at Cincinnati
SCOUTING THE TIGERS: Memphis comes into its game at Cincinnati as the No. 2 team in the country, riding an eight-game winning streak that includes notable wins over Oklahoma (63-53), Connecticut (81-70) and USC (62-58 OT). The Tigers, who returned all five starters from last year's team that finished 33-4, are strong on both ends of the court, averaging 80.1 points per game while giving up just 62.6 points per game and have held their last two opponents, USC and Middle Tennessee, to 58 and 41 points, respectively (49.5 ppg). For the year, Memphis' defense has held its opponents to .375 shooting from the floor and .312 from behind the 3-point arc.
Offensively, Memphis is led by a pair of double-digit scorers -- honorable mention all-America junior guard Chris Douglas-Roberts (18.3 ppg) and freshman standout guard Derrick Rose (14.4 ppg). The Tigers go eight players deep, who average seven or more points. The front court of senior forward Joey Dorsey (9.7 rpg) and junior forward Robert Dozier (7.5 rpg) lead a squad that averages 40.5 rebounds per game.
FAMILIAR FACES -- PART TWO: For the second time in four games, the Bearcats will take on a former Conference USA opponent, Memphis. On Dec. 1, UC dropped a 73-54 decision in Birmingham vs. UAB. The Bearcats won eight regular-season or tournament championships as a member of C-USA from 1995-2005. In its 10 years in the conference, Cincinnati made the NCAA Tournament each year and owned an overall record of 260-70 (.788), led by C-USA Players of the Year Danny Fortson (1996, 1997), Kenyon Martin (2000), and Steve Logan (2001, 2002). As a member of C-USA, Cincinnati owned a record of 9-2 (.818) vs. Memphis.
RANKED OPPONENTS: In the history of Cincinnati basketball, Wednesday's game vs. Memphis marks just the third time that UC has hosted a No. 2-ranked team on campus. UC has only played one No. 1 team in Cincinnati, but that was against Duquesne in 1954 at the Cincinnati Gardens. The Bearcats are 63-57 (.525) all-time against ranked opponents, but are 1-11 overall vs. teams ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press poll. The last time UC faced the No. 2 team was Feb. 23, 2006 when Villanova visited Fifth Third Arena and snuck out with a 74-72 win over the unranked Bearcats. UC's only win vs. a No. 2 squad was a 68-59 win over Louisville in 1967. The Bearcats have played Memphis 11 times when the Tigers have been ranked, posting a 3-8 mark.
GETTING SOME HELP: After missing Cincinnati's first six games with a hand injury, senior guard Jamual Warren returned to the court at UAB and has provided immediate help in his first three games back. After playing just 16 minutes at UAB, Warren has played 30 and 38 minutes vs. Illinois State and Xavier, respectively, giving sophomore Deonta Vaughn, who was averaging 36.5 minutes per game before Warren's return, a chance to rest. Possibly more important was Warren's presence on defense, where in just three games, he has taken over the team lead with nine steals. Offensively, Warren has averaged 10.5 points and 4.5 assists in two starts. His seven assists against Xavier equaled his career single-game high set at West Virginia last season.
DEFENSIVE HELP: The return of Jamual Warren to the line up at UAB has paid immediate dividends for UC defensively as he made nine steals already in three games. Last season, Cincinnati ranked eighth in the BIG EAST in steals per game (7.67) and Warren averaged 1.83 of the total. Before Warren's return, the Bearcats were only making 4.85 steals per game -- last in the BIG EAST -- but the Bearcats have averaged 6.7 steals per game in his three games back.
HARD TIMES FROM THE FLOOR: Even though Cincinnati is playing solid defense and giving up 66.5 points per game, it is the offense that has been the Bearcats' Achilles heel ... more specifically, their inability to shoot the ball. After opening with a 4-2 record and a .433 shooting percentage through its first six games, the Bearcats have shot just .360 (63-of-175) during its current three-game losing streak. Hardest hit during the slump has been the team's leading scorer Deonta Vaughn (14.4 ppg) who has connected on .308 percent of his shots and averaged 7.7 ppg during the three-game losing streak.
BACK TO WORK: Senior guard Marvin Gentry, who was taken off the floor at the Xavier game on Dec. 12 after colliding with teammate Deonta Vaughn and suffering a head injury, rejoined the team for practice over the weekend. The team's fourth-leading scorer averaging 7.8 points per game, Gentry took a knee to the head from Vaughn midway through the second half and was taken to University Hospital as a precaution and was released later that evening.
WILL-I-AM-SON: Senior forward John Williamson, who averaged 13.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game last season, has broken out of a four-game slump in his last two games vs. Illinois State and Xavier, scoring 20 points and pulling down 17 rebounds. In the four games prior to Illinois State, Williamson recorded six points per game 10-of-32 shooting (.313). Williamson was "Mr. Consistent" for UC last season, scoring in double digits in 23 of the team's 30 games. He is currently third on the team scoring with 8.8 points per game.
LET THERE BE NO CONFUSION: Despite having two Larry Davis's with the UC program -- the associate head coach and the freshman guard from Houston, Texas -- Larry Davis, the player, has begun to make a distinction between the two. In the last six games, Davis has averaged 7.4 points per game and taken over as the team's top scoring freshman (7.0 ppg). Davis is fourth on the team in shooting percentage, knocking down .465 percent of his shots (20-of-43).
EUROPEAN IMPACT: Senior center Adam Hrycaniuk (pronounced hu-RITZ-a-nyuk), a native of Poland, has made an immediate impact on the Bearcats. After having to sit out last year due to NCAA clearance issues, Hrycaniuk has jumped into the line-up for UC and become an offensive threat, scoring 10.9 points per game and joining sophomore Deonta Vaughn as the only other player averaging double-digit points on the team. The 6-foot-10 post player is also Cincinnati's second-leading rebounder with 6.1 rebounds per game.
BISHOP TAKES QUEEN (CITY): Freshman forward/guard Rashad Bishop quickly become one of the Bearcats' top all-around newcomers. Starting five games for UC this season, Bishop has scored in double digits three times, including two games with a season-high 12 points (Bowling Green and Fairfield). Overall, he is averaging 5.8 points per game after scoring eight points vs. Xavier. Not only has he provided offensive punch, he has also added 3.6 rebounds and is second on the team with 1.8 assists per game. Recently, ESPN.com named Bishop one of the BIG EAST's top impact freshmen.
30-MINUTE MAN ...: Through Cincinnati's first six games, senior point guard Deonta Vaughn was the iron-man of UC basketball, logging an average of 36.5 minutes per game. In the season opener vs. Belmont, Vaughn played 39 minutes for the Bearcats, three short of his career high of 42, in a 70-67 overtime victory over Seton Hall, on Feb. 28 of last season. With the return of UC's other veteran point guard, Jamual Warren to the line-up at UAB, Vaughn was able to play a season-low 28 minutes vs. the Blazers and 32 minutes at Illinois State. After Vaughn's 34.0 minutes per game, the next closest player on the team to him is senior Adam Hrycaniuk (28.3).
30-POINT MAN: Sophomore point guard Deonta Vaughn, the team's leading scorer last year and this year, had a night to remember vs. Coastal Carolina (Nov. 16). Vaughn established a new career high for points in a game with 36 and equaled his career best with nine 3-point baskets, one short of the school record. His 36 points were the most by a Bearcat since Steve Logan posted 41 vs. Southern Mississippi on Feb. 15, 2002. Vaughn leads Cincinnati in scoring this season with 14.4 points per game.
LENDING A HELPING HAND: Sophomore point guard Deonta Vaughn is averaging 5.1 assists per game, ranking him sixth in the BIG EAST. If he can maintain the pace, he would be the first player to dish out 5.0 or more assists per game since Taron Barker (5.0) in 2002-03.
PHYSICALLY FIT: Over the last 15 years, UC basketball has the reputation of being one the most physically fit teams in the country and developing players for the next level. That comes from the players' hard work in the weight room and conditioning. This season, Adam Hrycaniuk, John Williamson and Branden Miller each can bench press over 300 pounds, led by Hrycaniuk at 315 pounds. Even the guards have impressive stats with Deonta Vaughn squatting 500 pounds and Marvin Gentry, who weighs 180 pounds, bench pressing a max of 260 pounds. Freshman forward Darnell Wilks and senior guard Jamual Warren are the team's high flyers with 40- and 36.5-inch vertical jumps, respectively.
STRONG ON THE GLASS: After being out rebounded three straight games vs. Fairfield (-12 rebounding margin), UAB (-7), and Illinois State (-2), the Bearcats went strong to the glass at Xavier, beating the Musketeers in rebounding margin, 43-38. The 43 rebounds are second-most this season for UC since pulling down 44 against USC Upstate. Seniors John Williamson and Adam Hrycaniuk each recorded nine boards in the game and missed becoming the first pair of Bearcats with 10-plus rebounds in the same game since Eric Hicks (18) and Cedric McGowan (13) notched 18 and 13, respectively, vs. UNC-Charlotte on March 17, 2006.
WHEN YOU NEED IT MOST: Senior center Adam Hrycaniuk has been clutch for the Bearcats late in games, converting 7-of-8 free throws (.875) in the last three minutes of games determined by 10 points or less.
PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF: Head coach Mick Cronin, in just his second year at Cincinnati, has done the work of a coach in this fourth year on the job, having signed 15 players in the last 18+ months. This season's six-person freshman class is considered by the recruiting services as one of the top 20 groups in the nation and the stats attest to that. Larry Davis and Rashad Bishop have combined for five double-digit scoring nights and center Anthony McClain has scored 24 points, pulled down 25 rebounds (14 offensive) and blocked 11 shots in just 64 minutes of action. Davis and Bishop have had the best offensive seasons to date, averaging 5.8 and 5.5 ppg, respectively.
WILLIAMS TO MISS SEASON WITH RUPTURED ACHILLES: Junior forward Mike Williams, who was preparing for his first season on the court for the University of Cincinnati, will miss the 2007-08 season after rupturing his Achilles tendon in preseason workouts. Williams, a 6-7, 230-pound native of Camden, Ala., sat out last season at UC after transferring from the University of Texas and was expected to start this season for Cincinnati. As a Longhorn, Williams played in 58 games over two years, averaging 2.7 points and 3.4 rebounds.
THE INK IS DRY: The University of Cincinnati men's basketball team signed two players to national letters of intent for the 2008-09 season, head coach Mick Cronin announced on the first day of the early signing period. Joining the Bearcats are forward Yancy Gates (Cincinnati, OH/Withrow) and guard Cashmere Wright (Savannah, GA/Urban Christian High School).
Gates, a 6-foot-9, 255-pound forward, is one of the nation's top 50 players according to several recruiting sites. As a junior at Withrow High School playing for Walt McBride, Gates averaged 19.4 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game in 2006-07. He helped the Tigers to a 17-6 record and missed the state semifinals by one game. A second-team Ohio all-state selection, Gates is the first freshman player in Cronin's first three recruiting classes to come from the talent-rich Cincinnati area.
Wright, another highly-regarded recruit, who is ranked among many of the recruiting services top 100 players, comes to Cincinnati from the Urban Christian Academy in Savannah, Ga., where he averaged 36.2 points, 10.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game in 2006-07. In his first two games this season, Wright posted 43 and 35 points, respectively, and is a McDonald's All-America candidate.
IT'S ACADEMIC: Last year, senior Marcus Sikes and junior Branden Miller qualified for the Dean's List academic honors after Fall quarter for having grade point averages of 3.5 or above. Two others, John Williamson and Mike Williams, posted GPAs of 3.0 or above. The team's GPA for the quarter was 2.875, a shade lower than the 2.965 of the UC general student body.
BEARCATS ON TV: This season all 30 of Cincinnati's regular-season contests broadcast via its local package with FOX19 (WXIX-TV) or through the conference package with the ESPN family of networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Classic, ESPN 360, or ESPN Regional). The BIG EAST's ESPN Regional package, which includes the BIG EAST Game of the Week, can be seen in Cincinnati on CinCW, the digital sister station of WKRC-TV (Channel 12). CinCW is available on most local cable systems as well as satellite providers.
FOX 19 SUPPLIES TV COVERAGE: FOX19 (WXIX-TV) has been the local television home of Bearcats basketball for 26 of the past 28 years and will originate 10 games and air two others from the BIG EAST Game of the Week syndicated package with ESPN Regional. Jeff Piecoro (play-by-play) and Anthony Buford (color analyst) are the primary talent for the package.
LOOKING AHEAD: UC hits the road again following Memphis for a trip to the "Triangle" on Sunday, Dec. 23, and a match-up with the ACC's North Carolina State, a team Cincinnati knocked off, 80-71, in Fifth Third Arena last season. Deonta Vaughn poured in 25 points and made a career-high nine assists in the contest. This will be the Bearcats first visit to Raleigh since a 100-64 loss in 1953 - a span of 54 years.