TicketsJan. 29, 2011
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CINCINNATI - University of Cincinnati point guard Cashmere Wright scored a career-high 24 points, but it was not enough as West Virginia snapped the Bearcats' 13-game home winning streak, 66-55, Saturday night before a capacity crowd of 13,176 at Fifth Third Arena.
Wright connected on 9-of-13 shots from the field and made four three pointers, but was the only Bearcat to score in double figures. Dion Dixon added nine and Sean Kilpatrick added seven.
The Bearcats (18-4, 5-4 BIG EAST) forced converted 14 West Virginia turnovers in 17 points, but could not overcome a 35 percent (21-60) shooting night from the floor, including an 8-of-29 (27.6 percent) performance from behind the arc.
West Virginia (14-6, 5-3 BIG EAST) got 16 points each from John Flowers and Joe Mazzulla to lead the Mountaineers. WVU also held a 42-30 advantage on the glass and converted 15 offensive rebounds into 18 second-chance points.
Down three, 13-10, with 12:14 left in the opening stanza, the Bearcats went on a 13-4 run to take a six-point advantage, 23-17, with 6:11 left in the half. From there, WVU closed out the half with a 16-4 run of its own to take a six-point lead, 33-27 into the locker room at halftime.
UC used a pair of threes from Wright that paced an 11-4 run over the first five minutes of the second half, giving UC a 38-37 advantage with 15:24 remaining.
WVU's Joe Mazzulla scored the next three points on free throws, giving WVU a 40-38 lead with 13:46 left.
A three pointer by Sean Kilpatrick with 11:24 remaining pulled the Bearcats within one, 42-41. UC went the next 7:13 without a field goal, going 0-for-9 from the field. During that span the Mountaineers put the game away with a 15-5 run to lead 57-46 with 4:11 remaining.
UC will be back in action Feb. 5 at Pittsburgh. The game will tipoff at 6 p.m. ET and be televised on the BIG EAST Network.