By Brenda June Temple

1 16 2024

GAME NOTES

https://gobearcats.com/documents/2024/1/15/2023-24_Game_Notes__1_.pdf

CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati men’s basketball team is back home Tuesday night to host No. 19 TCU for its 90s Night. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

THE RUNDOWN

• The Bearcats are playing their fourth-straight ranked opponent, their longest streak since taking on six in a row in 1993-94 as part of the Great Midwest Conference.
• Cincinnati turned a nine-point deficit with 3:16 left into one point at 1:44, but Baylor held off a few late three-point attempts to escape, 62-59, on Saturday night.
• The Bearcats have held top-15 opponents BYU and Baylor to their season-lows this season, both on the road, and 30 and 25 points below their respective season averages entering that night.
• Cincinnati’s 94.4 adjusted defensive efficiency ranks 18th nationally in KenPom, while its opposing offensive rebound percentage (20.0) ranks first. Texas and Baylor had a combined 12 offensive boards. The Bearcats are ranked fourth nationally with a 12.0 margin, up from 101 last year and 211 in 2021-22. They have not lost the glass battle once this season, with only Baylor tying them.
• Dan Skillings Jr. was electric with a game-high 24 points in Waco, including 17 in the second half and seven in the final 2:54. It was his ninth double-figure effort this season and 13th of his career, as well as Cincinnati’s first loss in such games. The sophomore’s two starts at UC were at BYU and Baylor in place of starting big Aziz Bandaogo. He was a game-time decision off the bench at BYU but did not dress for the Baylor one.
• The Dec. 16 Dayton game remains the only one this season in which all scholarship players were available for health or transfer eligibility reasons, and both Bandaogo and CJ Fredrick suffered first-half injuries that have come and gone since. A hard foul on Bandaogo in the Texas game re-aggravated it.
• Day Day Thomas turned in a solid offensive performance in his semi-homecoming on Saturday, playing in front of his several Kilgore College connections. His 15 points came after scoring just seven combined in his first two Big 12 games, and he had no turnovers in 29 minutes.
• Cincinnati curbed its turnover bug a bit at Baylor, committing only 10 after averaging 17.0 over its first two league contests. Those 34 were far away the most its committed in a two-game stretch this season, which included averaging 10.4 over the non-conference campaign.
• Cincinnati is shooting 39.1 percent from deep at home, compared to 23.1 on the road. UC’s 65.3 ppg allowed in Big 12 play ranks fourth, while TCU’s 76.3 on offense is first.

SERIES HISTORY

• Cincinnati is 5-0 against the Horned Frogs, with the latter three coming as Conference USA foes.
• The first meeting came in the first round of the 1959 NCAA Tournament, with Cincinnati prevailing, 77-73, to kick off its first of five-straight Final Fours. It was the Bearcats’ second of 46 all-time NCAA Tourney wins.
• TCU coach Jamie Dixon is 8-4 over his career against UC, all coming while leading Pitt. The last contest was a 44-43 Cincinnati win on Dec. 17, 2013 in the Madison Square Garden.
• Since leaving C-USA, TCU became members of the Mountain West and Big East (no competitions) before securing Big 12 status. Cincinnati went from the Big East to the AAC before joining this season.

COURTESY UC SPORTS COMMUNICATIONS