TicketsCINCINNATI — Cincinnati raced out to a 13-0 lead, Dillon Mitchell recorded his fourth double-double of the year (12 points, 13 rebounds) and Josh Reed matched his career-high with 13 points as Cincinnati defeated TCU, 75-63, in a noon Saturday battle.
Mitchell also tied his career-high with 13 boards. Reed was 5-for-5 from the field and 2-for-2 at the foul line. It was Reed's second start out of his 89 games at UC and first at home.
Cincinnati, which never trailed, scored the game's first 13 points, while TCU started 1-for-13 from the field. The Horned Frogs, who last year in Fifth Third Arena started 9-for-10, found their rhythm with four-straight field goals to pull within 19-15 at 6:53, prompting Cincinnati's first timeout.
The Bearcats got it rolling again late in the first half after TCU got within 23-20, which would be its closest margin of the day. Dan Skillings drilled a 3-pointer off a skip pass from Jizzle James, and James drove for a left-handed layup that made it a 31-22 game with 1:22 left.
James' acrobatic layup, with the and-one, followed by a fastbreak lay-in after a midcourt turnover helped Cincinnati extend the lead to 41-26 with 16:23 remaining.
Mitchell went 4-for-4 from the foul line over a 32-second span as the Bearcats went up by 20 with 10:30 left.
TCU did not get back within single-digits until 2:15 via a put-back and foul after an offensive rebound, 66-57.
In addition to Mitchell's and Reed's performances, James led with 18 points while Day Day Thomas had 13. Aziz Bandaogo also added seven points, six rebounds and two blocks.
FROM WES MILLER
"I am thrilled with the win and proud of the guys. I thought the way we started both halves was a key for us tonight. I thought that was the most active we were defensively all night and the sharpest we were offensively to start those halves. I think that it is really important to talk a lot about how we started the game and how we started the second half. When you win in February in the BIg 12, it is a good feeling and just finding a way to win is great. That's what matters most, and that's the part I'm excited about. Obviously, we had a rough start in the first half of league play, but we have won four of six now. That's something in this league that is good and there's a lot of good teams that haven't won four of six, so I'm proud of that. Now we have another great opportunity in here on Tuesday night against Baylor."
Dillon Mitchell on the importance of rebounding
"I know that's going to help us win games. And we've been struggling with it recently, so I kind of took it personally and tried to do my best. What I was kind of focusing on was winning the rebound war. And I know if we can handle that, then everything else falls in place for us."
Josh Reed on how it feels to see his hard work pay-off in gameplay.
"It's been a good feeling just coming out every day, getting my shots up every day, and being aggressive in games, looking for my shot, being confident and knowing that my coaches and teammates all trust me."
UP NEXT
Cincinnati remains at home Tuesday night against Baylor (7 p.m. on ESPN2).
Mitchell also tied his career-high with 13 boards. Reed was 5-for-5 from the field and 2-for-2 at the foul line. It was Reed's second start out of his 89 games at UC and first at home.
Cincinnati, which never trailed, scored the game's first 13 points, while TCU started 1-for-13 from the field. The Horned Frogs, who last year in Fifth Third Arena started 9-for-10, found their rhythm with four-straight field goals to pull within 19-15 at 6:53, prompting Cincinnati's first timeout.
The Bearcats got it rolling again late in the first half after TCU got within 23-20, which would be its closest margin of the day. Dan Skillings drilled a 3-pointer off a skip pass from Jizzle James, and James drove for a left-handed layup that made it a 31-22 game with 1:22 left.
James' acrobatic layup, with the and-one, followed by a fastbreak lay-in after a midcourt turnover helped Cincinnati extend the lead to 41-26 with 16:23 remaining.
Mitchell went 4-for-4 from the foul line over a 32-second span as the Bearcats went up by 20 with 10:30 left.
TCU did not get back within single-digits until 2:15 via a put-back and foul after an offensive rebound, 66-57.
In addition to Mitchell's and Reed's performances, James led with 18 points while Day Day Thomas had 13. Aziz Bandaogo also added seven points, six rebounds and two blocks.
FROM WES MILLER
"I am thrilled with the win and proud of the guys. I thought the way we started both halves was a key for us tonight. I thought that was the most active we were defensively all night and the sharpest we were offensively to start those halves. I think that it is really important to talk a lot about how we started the game and how we started the second half. When you win in February in the BIg 12, it is a good feeling and just finding a way to win is great. That's what matters most, and that's the part I'm excited about. Obviously, we had a rough start in the first half of league play, but we have won four of six now. That's something in this league that is good and there's a lot of good teams that haven't won four of six, so I'm proud of that. Now we have another great opportunity in here on Tuesday night against Baylor."
Dillon Mitchell on the importance of rebounding
"I know that's going to help us win games. And we've been struggling with it recently, so I kind of took it personally and tried to do my best. What I was kind of focusing on was winning the rebound war. And I know if we can handle that, then everything else falls in place for us."
Josh Reed on how it feels to see his hard work pay-off in gameplay.
"It's been a good feeling just coming out every day, getting my shots up every day, and being aggressive in games, looking for my shot, being confident and knowing that my coaches and teammates all trust me."
UP NEXT
Cincinnati remains at home Tuesday night against Baylor (7 p.m. on ESPN2).