TicketsCINCINNATI – John Newman III scored a season-best 20 points, including seven in overtime, to lead the Cincinnati men's basketball team to an 81-77 victory over no. 19-ranked TCU on Tuesday night at Fifth Third Arena.
Guard Day Day Thomas added a career-best 21 points, taking control at the end of regulation, with Daniel Skillings Jr. (13) and Viktor Lakhin (11) also reaching double figures for a Bearcats team that earned their first Big 12 win at home to improve to 13-4 overall and 2-2 in the conference.
Cincinnati and TCU were tied 75-75 with 90 seconds left in overtime when Newman stole the ball and was fouled attempting a fastbreak layup. He buried both free throws to give Cincinnati a 77-75 lead with 1:18 left.
After TCU guard Jameer Nelson Jr. made a runner with 48 seconds left, Skillings Jr. made driving a layup with 20 seconds left to put Cincinnati back up, 79-77.
After Horned Frogs forward Jakobe Coles missed a 3-pointer, Thomas corralled the rebound and drilled two free throws to ice the game and secure the victory moments before the UC student section spilled onto the floor to celebrate.
Cincinnati shot 52% from the field, while holding TCU to 42% from the floor.
TCU (13-4 overall, 2-2 in the Big 12) led by as many as nine points in the second half and held a 64-58 advantage with five minutes left in regulation, but the Horned Frogs missed eight straight shots down the stretch during a scoring drought that lasted more than five minutes.
Cincinnati scored seven straight points, capped by Day Day Thomas' corner 3 that gave the Bearcats a 65-64 lead with 40.5 seconds left.
TCU guard Trevian Tennyson broke the TCU scoring drought by hitting an off-balance 3 – his fifth of the night – to put TCU back in front, 67-65, with 18 seconds left.
Thomas tied the game, 67-67, with a driving layup with 10 seconds left. Cincinnati and TCU combined to miss three straight free throws over the final three seconds to take the game to overtime.
The Bearcats trailed by as many as 11 in the first half and didn't take their first lead until the opening minute of the second half.
TCU made six of its first 11 3-point attempts to take a 29-18 lead on trey by Tennyson with 7:33 left in the first half.
Cincinnati responded with a 13-2 run to tie the game 31-31 on a corner 3-pointer from Skillings Jr. at the 2:31 mark in the first half.
FROM WES MILLER
"Well, I'm obviously more pleased with this result in the last two games and am really proud of our resilience. Just trying to continue to stay in a fight back and find a way. That was the real positive tonight. We've lost the last two games by one possession. Guys had chances to make the plays to win it, plays that you can expect to convert whether it's free throws or layups. As I told you guys after those games, that's not the reason you lose the game. The toll that takes on those guys and on the team when you keep losing. You lose a couple in a row that you felt you could have won by just converting, a reasonable play that you can expect to convert. Tonight when Dan misses the two free throws, I think it's kind of one of those things, you're going "oh my gosh, no way". You can feel that from the team and just find a way to get to overtime and they'll find a way. That's the kind of resilience that you are really proud of as a coach and it's something we can really build on moving forward, very proud of that."
UP NEXT
Cincinnati hosts No. 15 Oklahoma at 1 p.m. on Saturday at Fifth Third Arena. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
Guard Day Day Thomas added a career-best 21 points, taking control at the end of regulation, with Daniel Skillings Jr. (13) and Viktor Lakhin (11) also reaching double figures for a Bearcats team that earned their first Big 12 win at home to improve to 13-4 overall and 2-2 in the conference.
Cincinnati and TCU were tied 75-75 with 90 seconds left in overtime when Newman stole the ball and was fouled attempting a fastbreak layup. He buried both free throws to give Cincinnati a 77-75 lead with 1:18 left.
After TCU guard Jameer Nelson Jr. made a runner with 48 seconds left, Skillings Jr. made driving a layup with 20 seconds left to put Cincinnati back up, 79-77.
After Horned Frogs forward Jakobe Coles missed a 3-pointer, Thomas corralled the rebound and drilled two free throws to ice the game and secure the victory moments before the UC student section spilled onto the floor to celebrate.
Cincinnati shot 52% from the field, while holding TCU to 42% from the floor.
TCU (13-4 overall, 2-2 in the Big 12) led by as many as nine points in the second half and held a 64-58 advantage with five minutes left in regulation, but the Horned Frogs missed eight straight shots down the stretch during a scoring drought that lasted more than five minutes.
Cincinnati scored seven straight points, capped by Day Day Thomas' corner 3 that gave the Bearcats a 65-64 lead with 40.5 seconds left.
TCU guard Trevian Tennyson broke the TCU scoring drought by hitting an off-balance 3 – his fifth of the night – to put TCU back in front, 67-65, with 18 seconds left.
Thomas tied the game, 67-67, with a driving layup with 10 seconds left. Cincinnati and TCU combined to miss three straight free throws over the final three seconds to take the game to overtime.
The Bearcats trailed by as many as 11 in the first half and didn't take their first lead until the opening minute of the second half.
TCU made six of its first 11 3-point attempts to take a 29-18 lead on trey by Tennyson with 7:33 left in the first half.
Cincinnati responded with a 13-2 run to tie the game 31-31 on a corner 3-pointer from Skillings Jr. at the 2:31 mark in the first half.
FROM WES MILLER
"Well, I'm obviously more pleased with this result in the last two games and am really proud of our resilience. Just trying to continue to stay in a fight back and find a way. That was the real positive tonight. We've lost the last two games by one possession. Guys had chances to make the plays to win it, plays that you can expect to convert whether it's free throws or layups. As I told you guys after those games, that's not the reason you lose the game. The toll that takes on those guys and on the team when you keep losing. You lose a couple in a row that you felt you could have won by just converting, a reasonable play that you can expect to convert. Tonight when Dan misses the two free throws, I think it's kind of one of those things, you're going "oh my gosh, no way". You can feel that from the team and just find a way to get to overtime and they'll find a way. That's the kind of resilience that you are really proud of as a coach and it's something we can really build on moving forward, very proud of that."
UP NEXT
Cincinnati hosts No. 15 Oklahoma at 1 p.m. on Saturday at Fifth Third Arena. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.