TicketsOXFORD, Ohio -- The University of Cincinnati men's basketball team rallied and rose to the occasion in front of a packed house at Miami's historic Millett Hall, making the shots and stops it needed down the stretch for a 59-58 victory on Wednesday night.
It was the 148th meeting between the teams and first since Nov. 29, 2011.
Miami notched a three with 48 seconds left to cut it to 59-58. Jeremiah Davenport pulled down a crucial offensive board on the front end of a one-and-one free-throw opportunity with 23 ticks remaining, and after another Bearcat miss with 11 on the clock, Miami took it all the way but missed two desperation shots in the paint as time expired.
After both teams traded free-throws and jumpers, the last of which a deep David DeJulius two-pointer from the corner at 1:38, the Bearcats held a 57-53 lead. Two more RedHawk foul shots and a DeJulius layup followed for a 59-55 margin at 1:09.
Miami's free-throws at 3:04 marked its first points since 6:44 and brought it within 53-51. Abdul Ado on the next trip went 2-for-2 at the line, Cincinnati's first points at the charity stripe, to extend it to 55-51.
Davenport, after Miami's block swatted it to him on the wing, tied the game at 49 on a three with 5:45 to play. It was the Bearcats' first time even or ahead since 15:48. His pull-up, contested jumper on the ensuing possession gave the Bearcats their first lead of the half.
The RedHawks (5-2) ultimately missed 10 of their final 12 field goal attempts.
Davenport's three-pointer off an offensive rebound out-of-bounds in the waning seconds gave UC a 30-29 lead at the break, extending its season-long streak of eight games ahead at the half.
Cincinnati opened with 8-2 and 17-10 leads before the RedHawks went up 24-20 at 6:33, its largest until scoring the first five points of the second half to go up 34-30 at 18:16.
The Bearcats return to the Queen City for a Sunday night showdown with Bryant (7 p.m.).
QUOTES FROM WES MILLER
"Over the last five or six days, we had a chance to get a big win against Arkansas and didnt play to our standard in effort and focus against Monmouth. To come out tonight and win in a hostile environment against a dang good basketball team on the road is what I'm most proud of and something we can build off of. There are so many tough moments in college basketball, as we saw recently, so you have to enjoy the good ones...I'll enjoy this on the bus ride back, but then it's back to work with film.
"We have a lot of things we have to improve on. Our offensive execution has to get a lot better. Our defensive rebounding in the second half left a lot to be desired and we should have secured some balls. We had some mental breakdowns in each half that were controllable. But I'm really pleased with this win in a hostile environment, and it's something that will make us better."
NOTABLE
-It was the first meeting between the teams since Nov. 29, 2011 and the 148th overall. UC leads 95-43.
-Cincinnati has won every game in which it won the rebounding battle (48-36 tonight, including 22-11 on offensive glass).
-The Bearcats have also won every game Jeremiah Davenport has scored in double-figures. He finished with 14, including eight in the second half.
-Abdul Ado finished with 14 points after matching his season-high of six in the first half alone. He also had a season-high 11 rebounds.
-Ado's double-double was the first by a Bearcat this season (last: Tari Eason vs. Tulane on Feb. 26).
-John Newman III returned to the lineup after missing the Monmouth game. UC is 6-1 when he starts.
It was the 148th meeting between the teams and first since Nov. 29, 2011.
Miami notched a three with 48 seconds left to cut it to 59-58. Jeremiah Davenport pulled down a crucial offensive board on the front end of a one-and-one free-throw opportunity with 23 ticks remaining, and after another Bearcat miss with 11 on the clock, Miami took it all the way but missed two desperation shots in the paint as time expired.
After both teams traded free-throws and jumpers, the last of which a deep David DeJulius two-pointer from the corner at 1:38, the Bearcats held a 57-53 lead. Two more RedHawk foul shots and a DeJulius layup followed for a 59-55 margin at 1:09.
Miami's free-throws at 3:04 marked its first points since 6:44 and brought it within 53-51. Abdul Ado on the next trip went 2-for-2 at the line, Cincinnati's first points at the charity stripe, to extend it to 55-51.
Davenport, after Miami's block swatted it to him on the wing, tied the game at 49 on a three with 5:45 to play. It was the Bearcats' first time even or ahead since 15:48. His pull-up, contested jumper on the ensuing possession gave the Bearcats their first lead of the half.
The RedHawks (5-2) ultimately missed 10 of their final 12 field goal attempts.
Davenport's three-pointer off an offensive rebound out-of-bounds in the waning seconds gave UC a 30-29 lead at the break, extending its season-long streak of eight games ahead at the half.
Cincinnati opened with 8-2 and 17-10 leads before the RedHawks went up 24-20 at 6:33, its largest until scoring the first five points of the second half to go up 34-30 at 18:16.
The Bearcats return to the Queen City for a Sunday night showdown with Bryant (7 p.m.).
QUOTES FROM WES MILLER
"Over the last five or six days, we had a chance to get a big win against Arkansas and didnt play to our standard in effort and focus against Monmouth. To come out tonight and win in a hostile environment against a dang good basketball team on the road is what I'm most proud of and something we can build off of. There are so many tough moments in college basketball, as we saw recently, so you have to enjoy the good ones...I'll enjoy this on the bus ride back, but then it's back to work with film.
"We have a lot of things we have to improve on. Our offensive execution has to get a lot better. Our defensive rebounding in the second half left a lot to be desired and we should have secured some balls. We had some mental breakdowns in each half that were controllable. But I'm really pleased with this win in a hostile environment, and it's something that will make us better."
NOTABLE
-It was the first meeting between the teams since Nov. 29, 2011 and the 148th overall. UC leads 95-43.
-Cincinnati has won every game in which it won the rebounding battle (48-36 tonight, including 22-11 on offensive glass).
-The Bearcats have also won every game Jeremiah Davenport has scored in double-figures. He finished with 14, including eight in the second half.
-Abdul Ado finished with 14 points after matching his season-high of six in the first half alone. He also had a season-high 11 rebounds.
-Ado's double-double was the first by a Bearcat this season (last: Tari Eason vs. Tulane on Feb. 26).
-John Newman III returned to the lineup after missing the Monmouth game. UC is 6-1 when he starts.