DeJulius, Nolley Lead Bearcats to Season-Opening Blowout

CINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati men's basketball team rolled to a 98-55 win over Chaminade in its season opener on Monday.  

The Bearcats shot a blistering 57.8 percent from the field – the highest mark under Wes Miller. UC made 18 of its first 23 shots, including its first six three-point attempts. 

"It is great to get in front of your fans for the first time, the players have been chomping at the bit to do it," Miller said. "So, that was awesome and seeing them make some plays and have some fun and taste winning. I enjoyed that part of it. There are a lot of positives tonight.

"The level is going to increase here as we as we get later into the week, and play good Cleveland State team. So, I think there was some good stuff tonight and stuff we can build on. But I don't want to overreact either, we got some work to do. And we'll take a look at the film learn from it and try to get better to play against a higher-level opponent here on Thursday." 

The Bearcats were on cruise control from the opening tip, as they jumped to a 54-28 halftime team lead for also their highest output in a half under Miller. In the second, Cincinnati continued to push the pace growing the lead to a game-high 42 points.  

Graduate student David DeJulius picked up right where he left off last season, scoring a game-leading 24 points for the Bearcats. He shot 9-15 from the field and it marks the 13th time in his career he has scored 20.

Redshirt senior Landers Nolley II was dominant in his first game as Bearcats, leading all scorers with 19 points on 8-13 shooting and added four assists. The Memphis transfer scored the most points in a Cincinnati debut since Sean Kilpatrick scored 21 in 2010. He opened the game by going 9-of-9 from the field, including two threes.  

Graduate student Rob Phinisee matched his career in assist recording eight. It is the third time in his career that he has hit that mark and the first since 2018.

The Bearcats not only put on an offensive clinic but a defensive one as well, forcing 19 turnovers and holding the Silverswords to 39% shooting in the game.  

Cincinnati closed out the first half on a 6-0, bringing their lead to 26 points as they went into the locker room leading 54-28.

The Bearcats shot 71.4% from the field in the first, the highest percentage in a half under head coach Wes Miller. Both Nolley II and DeJulius scored 12, shooting a combined 9-12, in the half.  

Nolley II opened the game up with a three on the opening position, and the Bearcats never looked back.  Cincinnati went on a 16-4 in the 4:30 of the game, going 6-6 from the field and 4-4 from behind the arc, with Nolley II and Jeremiah Davenport each hitting pair and scoring the team's first 14 out of 16 points.

The Bearcats kept things rolling in the second half behind DeJulius's 12 second-half points. Cincinnati continued to push the pace growing the lead to a game-high 42 points as they closed out the their season opener 98-55.  

Up Next 
The Bearcats will play the second game of a three-game homestand to open the season as the Bearcats play host Cleveland State on Thursday, Nov. 10.  

NOTABLE
- The Bearcats' 54 points were the most scored in the first half since 2018 when they put up 59 against Arkansas Pine-Bluff.  
- Cincinnati had just one half of 50-plus points last year: the first against Alabama A&M on Nov. 18.
- Viktor Lakhin earned his first-career start after 29 reserve appearances last season.