TicketsKANSAS CITY -- A hard-fought battle with No. 12 Arkansas fell the Razorbacks' way one too many times, and Cincinnati was defeated for the first time of the Wes Miller era in a 73-67 decision on Tuesday night in the Hall of Fame Classic championship game.
"The athleticism and ability to pursue the ball with Arkansas is a little bit different than what we saw the last few nights," Miller said. "They had 18 offensive rebounds, and our turnovers are the things that will stick out offensively, particularly those down the stretch, and you can lose a game by one or two possessions and those are the ones you'll think about."
David DeJulius finished with a season-high 24 points, besting his 21 against Alabama A&M (Nov. 16). It marked third 20-point game in two years as a Bearcat, and he earned All-Tournament Team honors as well.
Arkansas (5-0) earned three crucial offensive rebounds to eventually draw a foul with a 68-67 lead and 21.8 seconds remaining. After sinking a pair, a charge was called on the Bearcats with 9.6 ticks left.
Hayden Koval's triple from the top of the key tied it at 63 with 3:43 left and was his second of the night. After some traded baskets, DeJulius sank a pair of foul shots to regain a 67-66 advantage at 2:25.
Back-to-back incredible possessions by Mike Saunders Jr., the first a beautiful feed and reverse layup for Viktor Lakhin and the second a pull-up triple, gave Cincinnati a 54-53 lead just shy of the eight-minute mark. DeJulius' baseline floater rattled home to increase the lead to three by a 7:19 media stoppage.
Cincinnati missed seven of first eight shots but only trailed 8-4 after DeJulius lane floater. Abdul Ado's lay-in at 9:13 gave Cincinnati its first lead, 14-13.
The Bearcats led 30-26 at the half despite Mika Adams-Woods missing the final eight-plus minutes due to three personal fouls.
Ody Oguama's touch-shot down low in traffic put Cincinnati back ahead 40-38 at 14:29 and were his first points of the game. A Razorback layup at the 13-minute mark put them ahead 41-40, the Bearcats' first second-half deficit of the season, but DeJulius found Oguama for his second-straight bucket inside for another lead. DeJulius struck again with a step-back, transition triple in front of his bench at 11:38 to put UC ahead, 45-43, at the media timeout.
Cincinnati (5-1) returns home Saturday to host Monmouth at 2 p.m.
NOTABLE
-It was the fifth all-time meeting between the schools and first since 1997. Cincinnati leads 3-2.
-UC had held its opponents to 5-of-47 shooting (10.6 percent) from deep over the previous five halves once the Razorbacks started 0-for-10.
-Ody Oguama's 10 rebounds were a season-high and fifth of his career (all previous ones at Wake Forest).
-The Bearcats (11-for-13) have shot 80 percent or better in four consecutive games.
-Former Cincinnati football great and Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce sat courtside.
-UC was the last remaining team nationally to be undefeated in football and men's basketball.
"The athleticism and ability to pursue the ball with Arkansas is a little bit different than what we saw the last few nights," Miller said. "They had 18 offensive rebounds, and our turnovers are the things that will stick out offensively, particularly those down the stretch, and you can lose a game by one or two possessions and those are the ones you'll think about."
David DeJulius finished with a season-high 24 points, besting his 21 against Alabama A&M (Nov. 16). It marked third 20-point game in two years as a Bearcat, and he earned All-Tournament Team honors as well.
Arkansas (5-0) earned three crucial offensive rebounds to eventually draw a foul with a 68-67 lead and 21.8 seconds remaining. After sinking a pair, a charge was called on the Bearcats with 9.6 ticks left.
Hayden Koval's triple from the top of the key tied it at 63 with 3:43 left and was his second of the night. After some traded baskets, DeJulius sank a pair of foul shots to regain a 67-66 advantage at 2:25.
Back-to-back incredible possessions by Mike Saunders Jr., the first a beautiful feed and reverse layup for Viktor Lakhin and the second a pull-up triple, gave Cincinnati a 54-53 lead just shy of the eight-minute mark. DeJulius' baseline floater rattled home to increase the lead to three by a 7:19 media stoppage.
Cincinnati missed seven of first eight shots but only trailed 8-4 after DeJulius lane floater. Abdul Ado's lay-in at 9:13 gave Cincinnati its first lead, 14-13.
The Bearcats led 30-26 at the half despite Mika Adams-Woods missing the final eight-plus minutes due to three personal fouls.
Ody Oguama's touch-shot down low in traffic put Cincinnati back ahead 40-38 at 14:29 and were his first points of the game. A Razorback layup at the 13-minute mark put them ahead 41-40, the Bearcats' first second-half deficit of the season, but DeJulius found Oguama for his second-straight bucket inside for another lead. DeJulius struck again with a step-back, transition triple in front of his bench at 11:38 to put UC ahead, 45-43, at the media timeout.
Cincinnati (5-1) returns home Saturday to host Monmouth at 2 p.m.
NOTABLE
-It was the fifth all-time meeting between the schools and first since 1997. Cincinnati leads 3-2.
-UC had held its opponents to 5-of-47 shooting (10.6 percent) from deep over the previous five halves once the Razorbacks started 0-for-10.
-Ody Oguama's 10 rebounds were a season-high and fifth of his career (all previous ones at Wake Forest).
-The Bearcats (11-for-13) have shot 80 percent or better in four consecutive games.
-Former Cincinnati football great and Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce sat courtside.
-UC was the last remaining team nationally to be undefeated in football and men's basketball.