TicketsMILWAUKEE (0-3) at CINCINNATI (1-1)
SERIES INFO: Cincinnati leads 3-0 overall; Cincinnati leads 3-0 in Cincinnati
LAST MEETING: Cincinnati won 93-60 on Dec. 27, 1999 at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati
STREAK: Cincinnati - Won last 3
COACHES: Mick Cronin is in his 13th season at Cincinnati (269-141); 16th season overall (338-165); Pat Baldwin is in his second season at Milwaukee (16-20); second season overall (16-20)
AP/USA TODAY (NOV. 12): Cincinnati (--/RV); Milwaukee (--/--)
RADIO: 700 WLW; Dan Hoard provides play-by-play with color analyst Terry Nelson
TV: ESPN3; Jim Barbar provides play-by-play with color analyst Mark Adams
JOIN THE CONVERSATION (TWITTER, FACEBOOK & INSTAGRAM): @GoBearcatsMBB or GoBearcatsMBB
By Bill Koch
GoBearcats.com
CINCINNATI – Most of the attention after the University of Cincinnati's 73-51 victory over North Carolina Central on Tuesday night was focused on sophomore guard Keith Williams, who scored 15 points in his first career start.
Lost amid the excitement over the breakout performance by Williams was another solid effort by senior point guard Justin Jenifer, who scored 10 points and ran the offense almost flawlessly.
The Bearcats (1-1) will be looking for their second straight victory at 7 p.m. Friday against Milwaukee (0-3) at Fifth Third Arena. The Panthers, who were picked to finish eighth in the 10-team Horizon League, opened their season with a 75-53 loss at Boston College and followed with losses to North Dakota (63-60) and Florida International (86-83). UC leads the all-time series, 3-0, with the last meeting coming in 1999. The Bearcats are 42-3 all-time in games against teams from the Horizon League.
Milwaukee, coached by Pat Baldwin, returns only three players from last year after its top three scorers transferred to other schools. The Panthers are led by point guard Darius Roy, who averages 17.3 points and 5.7 assists. Six-foot-seven guard DeAndre Abram, a transfer from George Mason, averages a double-double of 10.7 points and 11.7 rebounds.
Jenifer, a 5-foot-10 senior from Baltimore, was a flashy passer and big scorer in high school when he averaged 17.3 points per game at Milford Mill Academy, and scored more than 30 points in a game three times. At UC, he has learned to tone down the flash and concentrate on the fundamentals that allow him to run the UC offense competently.
UC coach Mick Cronin was lavish in his praise of Jenifer after the win over NC Central. In addition to his 10 points, Jenifer made four of his five shots from the field, including two of three from three-point range, with six assists and no turnovers in 30 minutes. He also had two steals. The only thing he didn't do was get to the free throw line.
"He was running our team the way it needs to be run, knowing what he's looking for," Cronin said. "That's who I challenge, the older guys. They have no excuse. They've been around. They know what to do. They know how hard it needs to be done. I give him the credit - six assists and no turnovers and tremendous defense, all-out effort on his ball pressure. That's pretty strong."
Jenifer has come a long way since he struggled to get on the court as a freshman. He became a starter last season on UC's 31-5 American Athletic Conference championship team, concentrating on feeding Gary Clark and Kyle Washington up front while taking care of the ball. He handed out 91 assists while committing 24 turnovers in 19.6 minutes per game. In two games this season, he has 11 assists and only one turnover.
But he's made his biggest strides on defense to the point that Cronin says he's the face of the Bearcats' defense in the early going this season.
"Our effort, our energy on defense was excellent (against NC Central)," Cronin said, "starting with Justin Jenifer at the front of our attack defensively. Somebody's got to set a tone for a team about what you stand for."
Jenifer arrived at UC as part of a three-man recruiting class that included Jacob Evans III, a first-round draft pick by the Golden State Warriors last summer; and junior forward Trevon Scott.
Scott, who redshirted as a freshman, is also making strides during the infancy of Cronin's 13th season at UC, averaging 10.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in his first two games. Against NC Central, he made all six of his field goal attempts, displaying a shooting range that he didn't demonstrate during his first two seasons.
"It's being confident," Scott said, "just trusting it, knowing that I can make that shot. It feels good. I'm not done. I'm going to keep working on it, keep mastering it, so that every time I shoot it I know it's going in. I put in my work with that shot, 15 feet and in. When you see results, it always feels good."
Bill 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.
SERIES INFO: Cincinnati leads 3-0 overall; Cincinnati leads 3-0 in Cincinnati
LAST MEETING: Cincinnati won 93-60 on Dec. 27, 1999 at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati
STREAK: Cincinnati - Won last 3
COACHES: Mick Cronin is in his 13th season at Cincinnati (269-141); 16th season overall (338-165); Pat Baldwin is in his second season at Milwaukee (16-20); second season overall (16-20)
AP/USA TODAY (NOV. 12): Cincinnati (--/RV); Milwaukee (--/--)
RADIO: 700 WLW; Dan Hoard provides play-by-play with color analyst Terry Nelson
TV: ESPN3; Jim Barbar provides play-by-play with color analyst Mark Adams
JOIN THE CONVERSATION (TWITTER, FACEBOOK & INSTAGRAM): @GoBearcatsMBB or GoBearcatsMBB
By Bill Koch
GoBearcats.com
CINCINNATI – Most of the attention after the University of Cincinnati's 73-51 victory over North Carolina Central on Tuesday night was focused on sophomore guard Keith Williams, who scored 15 points in his first career start.
Lost amid the excitement over the breakout performance by Williams was another solid effort by senior point guard Justin Jenifer, who scored 10 points and ran the offense almost flawlessly.
The Bearcats (1-1) will be looking for their second straight victory at 7 p.m. Friday against Milwaukee (0-3) at Fifth Third Arena. The Panthers, who were picked to finish eighth in the 10-team Horizon League, opened their season with a 75-53 loss at Boston College and followed with losses to North Dakota (63-60) and Florida International (86-83). UC leads the all-time series, 3-0, with the last meeting coming in 1999. The Bearcats are 42-3 all-time in games against teams from the Horizon League.
Milwaukee, coached by Pat Baldwin, returns only three players from last year after its top three scorers transferred to other schools. The Panthers are led by point guard Darius Roy, who averages 17.3 points and 5.7 assists. Six-foot-seven guard DeAndre Abram, a transfer from George Mason, averages a double-double of 10.7 points and 11.7 rebounds.
Jenifer, a 5-foot-10 senior from Baltimore, was a flashy passer and big scorer in high school when he averaged 17.3 points per game at Milford Mill Academy, and scored more than 30 points in a game three times. At UC, he has learned to tone down the flash and concentrate on the fundamentals that allow him to run the UC offense competently.
UC coach Mick Cronin was lavish in his praise of Jenifer after the win over NC Central. In addition to his 10 points, Jenifer made four of his five shots from the field, including two of three from three-point range, with six assists and no turnovers in 30 minutes. He also had two steals. The only thing he didn't do was get to the free throw line.
"He was running our team the way it needs to be run, knowing what he's looking for," Cronin said. "That's who I challenge, the older guys. They have no excuse. They've been around. They know what to do. They know how hard it needs to be done. I give him the credit - six assists and no turnovers and tremendous defense, all-out effort on his ball pressure. That's pretty strong."
Jenifer has come a long way since he struggled to get on the court as a freshman. He became a starter last season on UC's 31-5 American Athletic Conference championship team, concentrating on feeding Gary Clark and Kyle Washington up front while taking care of the ball. He handed out 91 assists while committing 24 turnovers in 19.6 minutes per game. In two games this season, he has 11 assists and only one turnover.
But he's made his biggest strides on defense to the point that Cronin says he's the face of the Bearcats' defense in the early going this season.
"Our effort, our energy on defense was excellent (against NC Central)," Cronin said, "starting with Justin Jenifer at the front of our attack defensively. Somebody's got to set a tone for a team about what you stand for."
Jenifer arrived at UC as part of a three-man recruiting class that included Jacob Evans III, a first-round draft pick by the Golden State Warriors last summer; and junior forward Trevon Scott.
Scott, who redshirted as a freshman, is also making strides during the infancy of Cronin's 13th season at UC, averaging 10.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in his first two games. Against NC Central, he made all six of his field goal attempts, displaying a shooting range that he didn't demonstrate during his first two seasons.
"It's being confident," Scott said, "just trusting it, knowing that I can make that shot. It feels good. I'm not done. I'm going to keep working on it, keep mastering it, so that every time I shoot it I know it's going in. I put in my work with that shot, 15 feet and in. When you see results, it always feels good."
Bill 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.