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By Bill Koch
GoBearcats.com
CINCINNATI - You know things are going well for the University of Cincinnati Bearcats when one of the first questions they get after a blowout win is why it took them so long to get started.
That's the way it was Sunday when UC broke away from a 12-12 tie midway through the first half and rolled to a 94-53 victory over South Florida before 12,576 fans at Fifth Third Arena.
"It took us a while to get in the game and get our emotions going on a Sunday at 4 o'clock," said junior forward Kyle Washington. "But once we got the juices flowing, you saw that we were in sync with everything."
No. 19 UC (19-2 overall, 8-0 in the American Athletic Conference) extended its winning streak to 12 games. The Bearcats have 21 straight at home. USF (6-14, 0-9) has lost nine in a row. The 41-point margin was the largest for UC in an AAC game since the league was formed in 2013-14. The Bearcats led by 46 with 5:21 left.
The already short-handed Bulls, under interim head coach Murry Bartow, were forced to play without point guard Geno Thorpe, who was out with an ankle injury. Thorpe averaged 13.4 points and 4.4 assists.
"Having to come in here on the road without Thorpe was quite an impossible task," said UC coach Mick Cronin.
UC guard Jarron Cumberland, who scored 15 points in the Bearcats' win over Xavier on Thursday night, topped that performance with a career-high 26 points. Sophomore guard Justin Jenifer, scored 12 points with five rebounds and nine assists. Washington added 13 and Jacob Evans scored 10 on a day when the starters were able to get some rest and watch their backups shine. The UC bench scored 60 points, seven more than the entire USF team.
The Bearcats took control by scoring 14 straight points after that 12-12 tie, nine by Washington. By halftime, the Bearcats had built a 49-25 lead, with Jenifer scoring 10 points.
"He was definitely the difference in the first half," Cronin said of Jenifer, "and I was happy for him. His parents were in for the game. That's even better. He's earned it. He had a great summer and he's practiced great all year. When a kid's working really hard you like to see him get the payoff."
As impressive as Jenifer's performance was, Cumberland's was eye-popping at times. The freshman from Wilmington High School made eight of 11 shots overall, six of nine from long range, as he continues to provide UC fans with a glimpse of his promising future. Beginning at the 15:20 mark of the second half, Cumberland scored 18 of his UC's next 20 points, making four 3-pointers along the way .
"I'm just building up my confidence," Cumberland said. "Coach is telling me to shoot the ball. Don't be hesitant. Once I get the ball and it's a 1-3-1 or a 2-3, there's got to be somebody to knock down the shot."
Cumberland is now shooting 41 percent from 3-point range for the season (25-for-61).
"He adds a different complexion to our team and a different type of depth," Washington said. "You can't say it's a fluke now because he did it in one of the biggest moments of our season last Thursday."
With Cumberland, Evans, Jenifer, Troy Caupain, Kevin Johnson and even Quadri Moore, the Bearcats have plenty of long-range shooting options to force opponents out of a zone defense, making it easier to get the ball inside, which is UC's real offensive strength.
The Bearcats, who lead the league in shooting percentage, shot 48.5 percent and forced 24 turnovers that they converted into 34 points. But they struggled again at the free throw line, making 18 of 30 after going 18 for 37 against Xavier. They're shooting 64.3 percent for the season.
But Cronin said he doesn't want to make an issue of it.
"I believe in the guys shooting," he said. "I keep telling the guys you can't stand over a 4-foot putt, thinking, I've got to make it, I've got to make it. You can't play that way. You've just got to go up and shoot the ball. You've got to believe in your routine. And you can't think about make or miss. I don't talk to them about it. All that does is exacerbate the situation."
Cronin, who preaches constantly about getting his team to improve every day regardless of the opponent, likes the Bearcats' mental approach.
"Playing smart is extremely, extremely underrated," he said, "the things that fans do not see. If you would ask me today what I was most happy about, other than Justin, it would be our defense on South Florida's shooter. What happened to us the other night (when XU's Trevon Bluiett scored 40 points) should have never happened, and today we did not let Troy Holston (six points, one-for-11 from the field) get going.
"Our world in March is a one-game world and you're out, so it can come down to one or two plays, a bad foul, a bad shot, a careless turnover or a blown defensive assignment and you're going home."
As Washington said, "Everybody knows what we have at stake. People on our team want to be individually great and that's what drives us because we push each other. We really want to make a far run in March, so we're always focused. A lot of people say that about our team, but we actually live it."
uBill Koch covered UC athletics for 27 years - 15 at The Cincinnati Post and 12 at The Cincinnati Enquirer - before joining the staff of GoBearcats.com in January, 2015.