TicketsGREENVILLE, S.C. — The Cincinnati men’s basketball team clawed back from a 27-point first-half deficit, but its comeback fell just short as Clemson held on for a 68-65 victory Sunday afternoon inside Bon Secours Wellness Arena. With the loss, the Bearcats drop to 7-5 on the year, while the Tigers improve to 10-3.
With 3:14 remaining, sophomore center Moustapha Thiam powered through contact for an and-one that sparked a 9-2 surge, trimming the deficit to 60-58 with 1:27 left. In the closing seconds, junior wing Sencire Harris drove to the rim for a layup with 10 seconds remaining to make it a one-point game, 64-63. The final moments turned into a free-throw battle, where Dillon Hunter converted two with three seconds left to seal the win.
The late push was the culmination of a second-half rally that began immediately after halftime, but the damage done in the opening 20 minutes left Cincinnati with no margin for error.
Graduate guard Day Day Thomas fueled the comeback, scoring 15 of his game-high 17 points in the second half, while connecting on 5-of-7 attempts from beyond the arc. Cincinnati opened the half on a 12-0 run, sparked by a Harris and-one and capped by a Thomas 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 42-33 at the 15:01 mark — the closest the Bearcats had been since the opening minutes in the first half.
Each Cincinnati surge was met with a response. After Thomas drilled consecutive threes to make it 47-39, Clemson answered with a 7-3 run to stretch the lead back to 54-42 with 8:24 remaining. Still, the Bearcats continued to chip away, closing within striking distance in the final minutes.
Cincinnati placed four players in double figures. Thomas led the way with 17 points and three steals, while Thiam added 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Junior guard Jizzle James and Harris each scored 10.
Neither team shot above 50% from the field, but both were effective from long range. Cincinnati shot 38% (22-of-58) overall and 40% (10-of-25) from three, while Clemson finished at 48% (24-of-50) from the floor and 50% (10-of-20) from deep.
The Bearcats held advantages in several key areas, including offensive rebounds (10-2), total rebounds (36-27), second-chance points (10-2) and fast-break points (9-6). Clemson countered with edges in points in the paint (24-20) and assists (15-9).
Despite cutting the deficit to one possession in the final seconds, Cincinnati never held a lead, as Clemson controlled the game from the opening tip.
The Tigers raced out to a 14-0 start as Cincinnati missed its first six shots before a Shon Abaev three put the Bearcats on the board at the 13:39 mark. Clemson’s lead ballooned to 23-3 midway through the half and eventually grew to a game-high 27 at 38-11 with three minutes remaining. Cincinnati closed the half on a 7-0 spurt to trail 38-18 at the break.
Clemson capitalized on eight first-half turnovers, turning them into 11 points while shooting 8-of-14 from three-point range. Cincinnati was limited to 26.1 percent shooting in the opening half.
Cincinnati concludes its non-conference slate when it hosts Lipscomb at 7 p.m. Dec. 29.