TicketsCINCINNATI – In its last scheduled home game at Cincinnati State this season, University of Cincinnati women's basketball will host the Saint Francis Red Flash on Monday at 7 p.m. Admission to the game will be free as part of the Experience UC initiative.
// EXPERIENCE UC
The Bearcats' 2017-18 campaign will, again, be part of the Experience UC initiative which offers free admission to home games. Groups interested in attending can contact Assistant Director of Marketing & Branding Deborah Dixon at dixond9@ucmail.uc.edu for more information.
// TEMPORARY HOME(S)
Due to the current, $87-million renovation of Fifth Third Arena, the Bearcats will play all home contests off campus this year. In the regular season, UC will play two games at Cincinnati State – the Nov. 13 home opener against Slippery Rock and the Nov. 27 meeting with St. Francis (Pa.) – with the remaining games played at Saint Ursula Academy Gymnasium & Convocation Center.
// STUDENT SHUTTLE
UC students are invited to enjoy a free bus ride to the game as well as free pizza. The bus will depart from the Bearcat statue on campus at 6 p.m. Free student shuttles to home UC women's basketball games will continue throughout the season.
// GAME PROMOTIONS
Fans are encouraged to get creative and bring signs to the game. Those with the best signs will win prizes.
// GOING LIVE
Aside from the Dec. 17 game against Ohio State on ESPN2 and the Feb. 17 game versus Tulsa on the American Digital Network, all home games in 2017-18 will be streamed live on BearcatsTV free of charge. The link to the live stream can be found on the women's basketball schedule page. On the same page, links to live statistics can also be found.
// THE SERIES
Monday's matchup will be the sixth all-time meeting between the two teams with UC dominating the series, 5-0. With each past game held in Cincinnati, the Bearcats most recently dropped the Red Flash, 93-86, on Nov. 14, 2015 inside Fifth Third Arena. In the home win, then sophomore guard Ana Owens (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) nearly posted a triple-double with game highs of 25 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists.
// LAST TIME OUT
UC (4-2) topped the Eastern Kentucky Colonels, 64-53, on Saturday afternoon at Saint Ursula Academy Gymnasium & Convocation Center.
After a deadlocked first quarter, 13-13, the Red & Black dominated the second with a 16-0 run from the 9:28 to 3:00 marks of the period and took a 34-18 advantage into halftime. Leading by a game-high 18 points early in the third quarter, the Bearcats saw the Colonels reduce their deficit to as little as six points with a minute to go in the period. Back-to-back baskets from UC to end the third allowed it to bring a 49-39 lead into the final quarter. EKU again cut its deficit to six points early in the fourth period, but the Red & Black answered with an 11-3 burst from the 9:16 to 2:43 marks of the quarter to take command of the game late. Solid play down the stretch allowed the Bearcats to pull away with a 64-53 win.
Senior forward Shanice Johnson (Philadelphia, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara/Monroe CC) paced a trio of UC double-figure scorers with 15 points, as well as a season-high six assists. Freshman forward Iimar'I Thomas (Oakland, Calif./Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep) followed with 14 points, and five rebounds, while Owens chipped in 11 points.
// SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
After becoming the 26th member of UC women's basketball's 1,000-point club last season, senior guard Ana Owens (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) continues her climb up the all-time scoring list. After scoring 11 on Saturday vs. EKU, her 1,176 total career points vaulted her into 15th place. She is on pace to break into the top 11 all-time before season's end.
As a team, UC is second in the conference and 26th in the country in field goal percentage at 47.1 percent. The Bearcats are limiting their opponents to 36.1 percent shooting which is fourth-best in the AAC and are totaling 15.7 assists a game which ranks third. The Red & Black also holds a 5.8 rebound margin and a 0.9 assist-to-turnover ratio which both rank fourth in the league.
Individually on the year, Johnson's 20 steals is 12th nationally and second in the AAC, while Thomas' 65.3 percent field goal percentage a contest ranks 17th-best in the country and tops in the league. Junior guard Nikira Goings' (Marietta, Ga./Osborne) 45.7 three-point field goal percentage stands as third in The American
// SCOUTING THE RED FLASH
SFU (2-2) is fresh off of a 103-71 home win over Seton Hill on Nov. 21. The Red Flash scored the first 18 points of the game and led 28-14 at the end of the first quarter and 53-36 going into halftime. A 16-5 SFU run to close the third period ultimately closed the deal as the Red Flash topped 100 points for the second time in as many seasons. Jessica Kovatch led all scorers with 25 points. Ace Harrison added 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Kyasia Duling posted 10 points and 13 rebounds.
For the season, Kovatch leads the Red Flash with 16.0 points per game, while Harrison and Duling follow with 14.0 and 11.3 a contest, respectively. SFU leads the Northeast Conference (NEC) in scoring at 74.5 points per game as well as in 3-point makes at 9.0. Opponents average 73.8 points per game against the Red Flash and shoot the ball at a 43.9 percent clip from the field.
In the preseason, the Red Flash was picked to win the NEC with seven first-place votes. In addition, Kovatch and Harrison were both selected for the All-NEC team.
// EXPERIENCE UC
The Bearcats' 2017-18 campaign will, again, be part of the Experience UC initiative which offers free admission to home games. Groups interested in attending can contact Assistant Director of Marketing & Branding Deborah Dixon at dixond9@ucmail.uc.edu for more information.
// TEMPORARY HOME(S)
Due to the current, $87-million renovation of Fifth Third Arena, the Bearcats will play all home contests off campus this year. In the regular season, UC will play two games at Cincinnati State – the Nov. 13 home opener against Slippery Rock and the Nov. 27 meeting with St. Francis (Pa.) – with the remaining games played at Saint Ursula Academy Gymnasium & Convocation Center.
// STUDENT SHUTTLE
UC students are invited to enjoy a free bus ride to the game as well as free pizza. The bus will depart from the Bearcat statue on campus at 6 p.m. Free student shuttles to home UC women's basketball games will continue throughout the season.
// GAME PROMOTIONS
Fans are encouraged to get creative and bring signs to the game. Those with the best signs will win prizes.
// GOING LIVE
Aside from the Dec. 17 game against Ohio State on ESPN2 and the Feb. 17 game versus Tulsa on the American Digital Network, all home games in 2017-18 will be streamed live on BearcatsTV free of charge. The link to the live stream can be found on the women's basketball schedule page. On the same page, links to live statistics can also be found.
// THE SERIES
Monday's matchup will be the sixth all-time meeting between the two teams with UC dominating the series, 5-0. With each past game held in Cincinnati, the Bearcats most recently dropped the Red Flash, 93-86, on Nov. 14, 2015 inside Fifth Third Arena. In the home win, then sophomore guard Ana Owens (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) nearly posted a triple-double with game highs of 25 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists.
// LAST TIME OUT
UC (4-2) topped the Eastern Kentucky Colonels, 64-53, on Saturday afternoon at Saint Ursula Academy Gymnasium & Convocation Center.
After a deadlocked first quarter, 13-13, the Red & Black dominated the second with a 16-0 run from the 9:28 to 3:00 marks of the period and took a 34-18 advantage into halftime. Leading by a game-high 18 points early in the third quarter, the Bearcats saw the Colonels reduce their deficit to as little as six points with a minute to go in the period. Back-to-back baskets from UC to end the third allowed it to bring a 49-39 lead into the final quarter. EKU again cut its deficit to six points early in the fourth period, but the Red & Black answered with an 11-3 burst from the 9:16 to 2:43 marks of the quarter to take command of the game late. Solid play down the stretch allowed the Bearcats to pull away with a 64-53 win.
Senior forward Shanice Johnson (Philadelphia, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara/Monroe CC) paced a trio of UC double-figure scorers with 15 points, as well as a season-high six assists. Freshman forward Iimar'I Thomas (Oakland, Calif./Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep) followed with 14 points, and five rebounds, while Owens chipped in 11 points.
// SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
After becoming the 26th member of UC women's basketball's 1,000-point club last season, senior guard Ana Owens (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) continues her climb up the all-time scoring list. After scoring 11 on Saturday vs. EKU, her 1,176 total career points vaulted her into 15th place. She is on pace to break into the top 11 all-time before season's end.
As a team, UC is second in the conference and 26th in the country in field goal percentage at 47.1 percent. The Bearcats are limiting their opponents to 36.1 percent shooting which is fourth-best in the AAC and are totaling 15.7 assists a game which ranks third. The Red & Black also holds a 5.8 rebound margin and a 0.9 assist-to-turnover ratio which both rank fourth in the league.
Individually on the year, Johnson's 20 steals is 12th nationally and second in the AAC, while Thomas' 65.3 percent field goal percentage a contest ranks 17th-best in the country and tops in the league. Junior guard Nikira Goings' (Marietta, Ga./Osborne) 45.7 three-point field goal percentage stands as third in The American
// SCOUTING THE RED FLASH
SFU (2-2) is fresh off of a 103-71 home win over Seton Hill on Nov. 21. The Red Flash scored the first 18 points of the game and led 28-14 at the end of the first quarter and 53-36 going into halftime. A 16-5 SFU run to close the third period ultimately closed the deal as the Red Flash topped 100 points for the second time in as many seasons. Jessica Kovatch led all scorers with 25 points. Ace Harrison added 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Kyasia Duling posted 10 points and 13 rebounds.
For the season, Kovatch leads the Red Flash with 16.0 points per game, while Harrison and Duling follow with 14.0 and 11.3 a contest, respectively. SFU leads the Northeast Conference (NEC) in scoring at 74.5 points per game as well as in 3-point makes at 9.0. Opponents average 73.8 points per game against the Red Flash and shoot the ball at a 43.9 percent clip from the field.
In the preseason, the Red Flash was picked to win the NEC with seven first-place votes. In addition, Kovatch and Harrison were both selected for the All-NEC team.