Cincinnati Welcomes UCLA on Wednesday Night

Cincinnati (9-2) plays host to UCLA (7-3) Wednesday night at Fifth Third Arena. The contest tips at 9 p.m. on ESPN2 and 700 WLW. 

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Cincinnati Welcomes UCLA on Wednesday NightCincinnati Welcomes UCLA on Wednesday Night
Carl Schmid - Cincinnati Athletics
UCLA (7-3) at CINCINNATI (9-2)
SERIES INFO: Sixth meeting; Cincinnati leads 3-2; UCLA leads 2-1
at neutral sites; Cincinnati leads 2-0 in Los Angeles. 
LAST MEETING: Cincinnati won 65-50 on Dec. 12, 2017 at
BB&T Arena in Highland Heights, Ky.
STREAK: Cincinnati - Won 1
COACHES: Mick Cronin is in his 13th season at Cincinnati (277-142);
16th season overall (346-166)
Steve Alford is in his sixth season at UCLA (124-60); 28th season overall (587-295)
AP/USA TODAY RANKINGS (DEC. 17): Cincinnati (RV/RV); UCLA (--/--)
RADIO: 700 WLW; Dan Hoard provides play-by-play with color analyst Terry Nelson
TV: ESPN2; Adam Amin provides play-by-play with color analyst John Thompson
JOIN THE CONVERSATION (TWITTER, FACEBOOK & INSTAGRAM): @GoBearcatsMBB or GoBearcatsMBB

By Bill Koch
GoBearcats.com


CINCINNATI – Nearly three weeks ago, the University of Cincinnati Bearcats embarked on a five-game stretch that figured to tell them a lot about their prospects for 2018-19.

That stretch will come to an end when the Bearcats (9-2) take on UCLA (7-3) at 9 p.m. at Fifth Third Arena in a return game after UC knocked off the Bruins, 77-63, last year at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles.
    
UC won the first three games in this span against UNLV, Northern Kentucky and Xavier before seeing its nine-game winning streak come to an end last Saturday against No. 18 Mississippi State, 70-59, on the road. The Bulldogs made 12 of 23 shots from three-point range in that game.

"Sometimes you've just got to give them credit," said UC coach Mick Cronin.  "It's like playing baseball when you're pitching against a great lineup. You make a few mistakes and you get beat. That's how it was. All it takes is a mistake here or there and it costs you."

The Bearcats lead the series with UCLA, 3-2, but this is the first time the two schools will play in Cincinnati. The Bruins are big and long, with eight players at 6-foot-8 or taller, but they're very young, with no seniors on their roster and only four juniors.
 
"They have tremendous size," Cronin said, "the biggest team we'll play all year by far as far as depth of size. They block a lot of shots. They challenge you at the rim. I think they're more talented overall this year. They're just younger.
They present a lot of problems."

UC also has good size up front. Junior center Nysier Brooks is 6-foot-11, 240 pounds; junior forward Trevon Scott is 6-foot-8, 225; and backup forward Eliel Nsoseme is 6-foot-9, 225, so there should be plenty of action around the basket, which is just the way Brooks likes it.

"The games where the players are bigger are more of a game where the refs will probably let us be more physical," Brooks said. 

UCLA has four players averaging in double figures, led by Kris Wilkes at 17.4 points per game. Point guard Jaylen Hands (12.5 points, 6.8 assists) leads the Pac-12 in assists per game. Seven-foot-one freshman center Moses Brown entered the week ranked third in the league with 2.6 blocked shots per game. He averages 11.8 points and 9.7 rebounds.

Because it's so difficult to score inside against the Bruins, the Bearcats can help their cause by knocking down three-point shots. They rank sixth in the American Athletic Conference in that category, shooting 33.7 percent from long range. But their best bet might be to beat the tall, rangy UCLA defense by scoring in transition before the Bruins can get set up.

"We had zero fast-break points against Mississippi State," Cronin said. "We've got to get some fast-break points in every game. It's an area where we need to improve. Against them, they do such a good job around the rim, you're going to have to make sure you pass the ball well and use their size against them. You've got to go up with strength. They're excellent at defending you without fouling. They all jump straight up and show their hands to the officials."

Cronin would also like to see senior guard Cane Broome get back on track offensively. Broome, who averages 9.1 points per game, played only 10 minutes against Mississippi State. He scored only two points, both on free throws. Against Xavier, he scored three points in 17 minutes.

 "With him, if he's playing well on offense you're going to go with him," Cronin said. "If he's struggling offensively, defense isn't the thing that keeps him on the floor. He's coming in there for offense. I've got to his confidence back."

With 11 national titles, UCLA is one of the most hallowed names in college basketball, so this game shapes up as a major attraction for UC fans. But the Bearcats have a strong tradition of their own. The Bruins rank seventh in all-time victories with 1,877. UC isn't far behind at No. 14 with 1,797 wins. The Bearcats also have two national titles and six Final Four appearances to their credit, including five straight from 1959 to 1963. 

Having beaten the Bruins rather handily last year, the current Bearcats aren't likely to be as star-struck about playing against UCLA as their fans probably will be. When you factor in the Bruins' 74-72 home loss to Belmont last Saturday, they seem even more vulnerable. Their other two losses were against Michigan State and North Carolina.

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.