TicketsDec. 14, 2011
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FAIRBORN, Ohio - The University of Cincinnati men's basketball team made 14 three-pointers and defeated Wright State University 78-58 Wednesday evening at Nutter Center.
All five UC starters scored in double figures, led by redshirt sophomore swingman Sean Kilpatrick (White Plains, N.Y./Notre Dame Prep), who scored a game-high 20 points after drilling a career-high six three-point baskets.
Also in double figures for Cincinnati (6-3) were junior guard Jaquon Parker (Suffolk, Va./King's Fork), who totaled 14 points in his second game of the season; junior point guard Cashmere Wright (Savannah, Ga./Urban Christian Academy) with 12 points; sophomore forward Justin Jackson (Cocoa Beach, Fla./Arlington Country Day), who produced a career-high 11 points; and senior guard Dion Dixon (Chicago, Ill./Crane Technical Prep Common) with 10.
Freshman forward Jermaine Sanders (Far Rockaway, N.Y./Rice) scored a career-best nine points after making all three of his shot attempts from behind the arc.
Playing without three of its frontcourt players - senior forward Yancy Gates (Cincinnati, Ohio/Withrow), junior center Cheikh Mbodj (Dakar, Senagal/Grayson County College) and freshman forward Octavius Ellis (Memphis, Tenn./Whitehaven) - Cincinnati employed an up-tempo, four-guard offensive attack directed by Wright, who recorded seven points and seven assists in the first period.
With four perimeter players on the floor at all times, the Bearcats offense blitzed the Raiders with an array of three-pointers and drives to the rim. UC shot a blistering 13 for 22 from downtown in the first half, including five treys from Kilpatrick, who led all scorers with 17 points in the first period.
After Wright State (4-7) scored the first basket of the night, the Bearcats took an early 17-2 lead after they went on a 17-0 run that featured nine points on 3 for 3 shooting from three-point range by Kilpatrick.
The Bearcats went into halftime leading 43-22 after shooting 57 percent from the field and committing just three turnovers. UC's 43 first-half points were the second-most scored in any half by the Bearcats this season. UC scored 44 in the first half in a 73-59 win over Jacksonville State on Nov. 15.
Jackson, who manned the paint as the lone forward on the court for most of the night, had one of his best outings of the season with eight rebounds and three blocks in 21 minutes before fouling out in the final seconds of the game.
Redshirt freshman center Kelvin Gaines (Ocala, Fla./Arlington Country Day) scored his first career points with a layup set up by a drive-and-dish from Sanders at the 2:30 mark in the first half that gave UC a 38-20 lead. Gaines finished the night with two points, two rebounds, two blocks and one assist before fouling out after 17 minutes of action.
Cincinnati's 14 three-pointers ranks fourth all-time in the single-season record book and are the most since also making 14 against Utah Valley State on Dec. 11, 2010.
After playing three straight road games, Cincinnati returns home to Fifth Third Arena to play host to Radford University at 2 p.m. Saturday.