TicketsCINCINNATI — The Cincinnati men’s basketball team will play its final exhibition game in preparation for the 2026-27 season when it hosts Oakland at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Fifth Third Arena.
Fans can tune in to audio of Cincinnati’s game on GoBearcats.com or the Bearcats App. Chase Younts and Terry Nelson will be on the call.
The Bearcats have split their two exhibitions to this point, topping Ohio State, 79-68, in the CareSource Invitational Oct. 7 at Lindner Family Tennis Center, before dropping a 105-96 decision to preseason No. 3-ranked Illinois Oct. 17 at Fifth Third Arena. Through the two games, senior guard Tylen Riley 27 is averaging points and eight assists per contest, while senior forward Tyler Tejada is averaging 15 points per game.
Bearcat Bits
- The 2026-27 campaign marks the 126th season of competition for Cincinnati men’s basketball. Cincinnati, which was named a top-10 program in college basketball history by the Associated Press, boasts 44 All-Americans, 41 conference titles, six Final Four appearances and back-to-back national championships across its history, which dates back to the 1901-02 season.
- Cincinnati is under the direction of first-year head coach Jerrod Calhoun, who was named the 29th head coach in program history on March 24, 2026. The 2026 Mountain West Conference and 2023 Horizon League Coach of the Year has nine 20-win seasons as a head coach and has been a conference champion in three different leagues on his way to a 297-159 career record.
- The Bearcats welcome 14 newcomers to the program, with the lone returner fifth-year Grant Darbyshire. Cincinnati is one of just seven teams nationally to return zero points from a season ago.
- A veteran group, the Bearcats are comprised of a group of three fifth-year players, six seniors, two juniors and four sophomores without a freshman on the roster.
- Oakland, under the direction of 43rd-year head coach Greg Kampe, has split its two exhibition games, earning a 103-74 victory over Grand Valley Oct. 15 before suffering an 89-75 loss to Tennessee State Oct. 24. The Golden Grizzlies return just two players who saw action last season, juniors Nassim Mashhour and Warren Marshall IV, while welcoming 10 newcomers.
- The Bearcats, who open the regular season against American Nov. 2 at Fifth Third Arena, will play 10 non-conference games at Fifth Third Arena before Big 12 play opens with a home matchup against Texas Tech Jan. 2.