TicketsCINCINNATI – The University of Cincinnati women's basketball team concludes non-conference play with a Wednesday night contest against Marshall. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. inside Fifth Third Arena.
THE RUNDOWN
THE RUNDOWN
- Cincinnati (7-2) earned a 60-48 victory over Xavier in the Crosstown Shootout on Sunday at the Cintas Center. The Bearcats retained the Kendle Cup for the second straight year, marking their fourth win in the last five matchups against the Musketeers.
- Head coach Katrina Merriweather remained unbeaten in the rivalry, improving her career record to 11-0 vs. Xavier.
- Cincinnati native Jillian Hayes delivered another standout performance, recording her sixth double-double of the season and 29th of her career. She finished with 18 points and a season-high 16 rebounds, just one shy of her career best. She added two blocks and two steals to her stat line.
- Hayes is now averaging a double-double with 19.3 points and 10.4 rebounds per game, shooting 48% from the field. Her six double-doubles lead the Big 12 and rank 12th nationally, and she is one of just 15 players in the country averaging a double-double this season.
- Hayes is closing in on 1,500 career points, needing just 27 more to become the 10th Bearcat in program history to reach the milestone. She has already set a career high for 20-point games in a single season, with four in the first nine contests.
- Sophomore Reagan Jackson erupted for a career-high 29 points in the win over Western Illinois, shooting 10-of-13 from the field and 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. Over her last three games, she is averaging 15.7 points and shooting 65.4% overall and 46.7% from deep.
- Senior Tineya Hylton has also been a consistent force, scoring 20 points in four of the first eight games and tallying six double-digit scoring performances. She leads the Bearcats in assists (3.9 per game, 16th in the Big 12) and ranks among conference leaders in free throw percentage (.833, 6th) and steals (2.0, 12th).
- Defensively, the Bearcats have held eight of their nine opponents to 59 points or fewer, going 7-1 in those games.
- Over the last three contests, Cincinnati has forced 67 turnovers (22.3 per game) while committing a Big 12-best 11.4 turnovers per game, ranking second in the conference in turnover margin (+8.4). Cincinnati is 6-0 when committing fewer turnovers than its opponent.
- Redshirt junior Alliance Ndiba has been a reliable interior presence, ranking 10th in the Big 12 in blocks (1.1 per game) and 12th in rebounds (7.0). She has led the Bearcats in rebounding twice and in blocks four times this season.
- Cincinnati leads the Big 12 in free throw percentage (79.3%) and is averaging 23 attempts per game, ranking eighth nationally. Hayes paces the team with seven attempts per game.
- Twice this season, UC has made 31 free throws in a game—the most in the Big 12 and tied for 10th nationally.
- The team's turnover margin highlights a key trend: 8.9 turnovers per game in wins, but 20.5 turnovers per game in losses.
- Head coach Katrina Merriweather recently signed a historic 2025 recruiting class, ranked No. 7 nationally by ASGR Hoops—the highest in program history.