Bearcats Welcome Drake in Home Opener

  DRAKE (1-0) AT RV/-- CINCINNATI (0-1)
Monday, Nov. 11 // 7 p.m. ET
Fifth Third Arena // Cincinnati, Ohio
SERIES INFO: Cincinnati leads 22-8 overall; The Bearcats lead
12-3 in Cincinnati and 10-5 in Des Moines;
The teams have never met at a neutral site.
LAST MEETING: Cincinnati won 73-67 on Jan. 23, 1974
in Des Moines, Iowa
STREAK: Cincinnati - 1
COACHES: John Brannen is in his first season at Cincinnati (0-1);
Sixth season overall (82-53)
Darian DeVries is in his second season at Drake (25-10);
Second season overall (25-10)
AP/USA TODAY RANKINGS (PRESEASON): Cincinnati (RV/--);
Drake (--/--)
RADIO: 700 WLW; Dan Hoard provides play-by-play
with color analyst Kevin Johnson
TV: FOX Sports Ohio; Tom Gelehrter provides play-by-play
with color analyst Terry Nelson
JOIN THE CONVERSATION (TWITTER, FACEBOOK
& INSTAGRAM): @GoBearcatsMBB or GoBearcatsMBB
 
// GAME PREVIEW

• The University of Cincinnati's men's basketball team plays its 2019-20 home opener Monday, Nov. 11 when it welcomes Drake to Fifth Third Arena. Tip is set for 7 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast by FOX Sports Ohio and 700 WLW. It is also available outside the FOX Sports Ohio viewing arena on ESPN3.  
• Monday is Veterans' Day and marks Military Appreciation Night at Fifth Third Arena. 
• Tickets are available for purchase online at GoBearcats.com/Tickets or by calling 1-877-CATS-TIX.  
• The Bearcats opened the season with a 65-56 setback at No. 18 Ohio State on Wednesday, Nov. 6. Jarron Cumberland and Keith Williams led the effort with 13 points each. Trevon Scott grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds. UC led by as many as eight points in the first half and trailed by only a basket with 4:07 left but could not pull out the victory. 
• Drake opened the season with an 86-55 home win over Kennesaw State on Thursday. Four Bulldogs scored in double figures led by D.J. Wilins' 19 points. Drake tied a school record, making 17 3-pointers, including five from Jonah Jackson and four from Wilkins. 
• A common matchup when both schools were members of the Missouri Valley Conference (1957-58 through 1969-70), Drake and Cincinnati have met 30 previous times in series history with the Bearcats owning a 22-8 advantage. UC owns a 12-3 lead in Cincinnati and a 10-5 edge in Des Moines, Iowa. The last meeting resulted in a 73-67 UC win on Jan. 23, 1974 at Drake. 

// CINCINNATI STORYLINES

• Monday marks the first home game for John Brannen as Cincinnati's head coach. Brannen posted an 81-51 record in four seasons at nearby Northern Kentucky, including a 72-30 mark since 2016-17 with three postseason appearances, two NCAA showings and two Horizon League regular-season and tournament championships.  
• UC owns an 85-11 (.885) all-time record in home openers, including a 25-2 (.926) mark at Fifth Third Arena.
• UC's non-league schedule ranks tied for the third toughest in the nation according to CBSSports.com. 
• UC was predicted to finish third in the American Athletic Conference (behind Memphis and Houston, who tied for first) according to a preseason polling of league coaches in October. 
• Senior guard Jarron Cumberland was tabbed the AAC Preseason Player of the Year by the league's coaches. 
• UC's 89 wins since the start of 2016-17 are tied for the third most in the nation behind only Gonzaga (102) and Villanova (94) entering the season. 
• The Bearcats are one of six schools to make the NCAA Tournament each of the last nine years. 

// SCOUTING DRAKE

• Drake returns three starters from its 2018-19 squad that shared the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title (with Loyola Chicago), posting a 24-10 overall mark.
• Guard D.J. Wilkins averaged 11.1 points and made 63 3-pointers a year ago. The 2019-20 Preseason Third Team All-MVC selection led the Bulldogs with 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting in Thursday's season opener against Kennesaw State. 
• Forward Tremell Murphy averaged 10.4 points and 6.2 rebounds last season while point guard Noah Thomas averaged 7.0 points and 2.6 assists.
• Sophomore guard Roman Penn started at the point position against Kennesaw State. The transfer from Siena averaged 9.7 points and 3.0 assists as a freshman.
• Junior-college transfer guard Jonah Jackson was 5 of 8 from beyond the arc for 15 points against Kennesaw State.
• Drake was picked to finish fifth in the MVC in a preseason poll of sports information directors, media and coaches.  
• Former Creighton assistant Darian DeVries earned MVC Coach of the Year accolades last season in his first year as Drake's head coach.  

// SERIES HISTORY

• Cincinnati leads the series 22-8 overall, including a 12-3 lead in Cincinnati and a 10-5 edge in Des Moines, Iowa. 
• The teams played twice a year while both were members of the Missouri Valley Conference from 1957-58 through 1969-70 with Cincinnati posting a 19-7 advantage.
• The last four meetings in the series came while Cincinnati was an Independent, including the last matchup, a 73-67 Bearcats win at Drake on Jan. 23, 1974. 
• During its 13 seasons in the MVC, Cincinnati posted a 286-76 overall record, 128-52 conference mark, won seven league championships, advanced to five consecutive Final Fours (1959-63) and claimed two national titles (1961 and 1962).

// CINCINNATI HOME OPENERS

• Cincinnati owns an 85-11 (.885) all-time record in its home openers, including a 25-2 (.926) mark at Fifth Third Arena. 
• The Bearcats saw their 10-game win streak in home openers snapped last season, falling 64-56 to Ohio State (11/7/18) in the first game inside newly renovated Fifth Third Arena. 
• UC head coach John Brannen is 4-0 in home openers. 
• Wednesday's UC season opener at Ohio State marked the first time the Bearcats started a season on the road since a 69-62 setback at No. 18 Oklahoma State (11/16/2001). It marked the 22nd time in 119 seasons of UC basketball that the program started the year on the road. 

// TOUGH NON-LEAGUE SCHEDULE

• Cincinnati owns one of the nation's toughest nonconference schedule's according to CBSSports.com. The Bearcats' non-league slate ranks tied for third with Kansas and North Carolina. 
• UC's nonconference schedule includes road games at preseason No. 18 Ohio State and No. 19 Xavier. 
• Challenging home matchups include contests with 2019 NCAA Sweet 16 participant Tennessee (12/18); 2019 Missouri Valley co-champion Drake (11/11); last year's American East Conference champion Vermont (12/3); and 2019 Patriot League co-champion Colgate (12/14). 
• The Bearcats will battle 2019 NCAA tournament participant Iowa (12/21) in Chicago and could potentially face 2019 NCAA tournament participant Nevada (11/25) at the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands.  
• NON-LEAGUE SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS: Ten teams won 20 or more games ... Nine teams advanced to postseason play ... Seven teams finished first or second in their league ... Six teams participated in the NCAA Tournament ... Six teams finished in the Top 100 of the 2018-19 NET Rankings.

// UP NEXT

• Cincinnati plays host to Alabama A&M on Thursday, Nov. 14 at Fifth Third Arena. The game tips at 7 p.m. on FOX Sports Ohio, ESPN3 and 700 WLW.
• Tickets start at $20 and are available for purchase at GoBearcats.com/Tickets or by calling 1-877-CATS-TIX.