TicketsMONTREAL, Quebéc – The University of Cincinnati men's basketball team capped off its three-game tour of Canada cruising past McGill, 79-53, Tuesday at Love Competition Hall.
The guard trio of Jarron Cumberland (Wilmington, Ohio/Wilmington High School), Rashawn Fredericks (St. Croix, Virgin Islands/Motlow State CC) and Cane Broome (East Hartford, Conn./Sacred Heart) combined for 33 points while the Bearcats defense wreaked havoc on the Redmen, scoring 21 points off 29 McGill turnovers and limiting the host team to 35.2 percent shooting from the floor.
Offensively, the Bearcats hit a tour-high seven three-pointers and recorded 16 assists.
The effort pleased 13th-year Bearcats head coach Mick Cronin whose squad was coming off an 86-67 setback at Carleton on Monday night.
"I thought our defensive intensity was much better tonight," Cronin said. "We created 29 turnovers which probably would have been a season high for last season. We watched a little film (earlier today). The guys showed a little character tonight. Carleton showed us how hard you have to play."
UC led from the tip, scoring the game's first 11 points while jumping to a 16-6 lead after the first quarter. Cumberland, who led the Bearcats with 17 points and five rebounds, recorded assists on each of UC's first four baskets. He ended with five assists in the game.
"Our passing was as good as it has been on this trip," Cronin said. "(Jarron) Cumberland dominated the game early with his passing. It was a good trip for him because he's getting used to teams loading up on him, being physical with him."
Fredericks, who made his first start on the Canadian tour, poured in 12 points, including six of UC's first eight points. He finished a perfect 4 of 4 from the floor, with a pair of three-pointers.
Broome scored nine of his 14 points after halftime. He shot 6 of 12 from the field and played 20 minutes without a turnover.
McGill point guard Alex Paquin led all scorers with 21 points. The feisty American University graduate shot 8 of 19 from the floor with a pair of threes.
A 16-point second-quarter Bearcats lead was trimmed to 36-28 on a basket inside by Paquin with 17 seconds left before halftime. However, Broome hit a 12 footer just before the intermission horn and Cincinnati's lead was never in question during the second half.
With the victory, UC completes its trip with a 2-1 mark. The Bearcats started the tour with an 85-57 win over Ottawa on Sunday at College Jean de Brebréuf in Montreal before suffer the loss Monday at Carleton.
"It's been a good trip. We played against some great teams and great coaches," Cronin said. "It was a good opportunity to see where we are at and what we got to build on so as a coaching staff. We'll go back to the drawing board, give these guys a break and get ready to start it up in September and start trying to build towards putting a winning team together.
"I think our guys definitely learned something in the Carleton game, that we've got a ways to go but that's a good thing," Cronin added. "That's why I wanted to play that game on the road. I'm really happy with the trip. I think we got a lot out of it."