GAME NOTES
https://gobearcats.com/documents/2023/1/26/2022-23_Game_Notes_at_Houston.pdf
CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati men’s basketball team is set for a CBS stage on Saturday afternoon when it heads south to battle No. 3 Houston. Tip-off is at 2:20 p.m. ET.
CBS | Listen Live (700 WLW) | Live Stats
Cincinnati tied Memphis with 12 minutes left after facing a 13-point, first-half deficit, but the Tigers responded with a 9-1 run to get the separation they needed in a 75-68 decision Sunday afternoon. Viktor Lakhin’s 22 points (11-of-14 shooting in 33 minutes, all career-highs) as well as his 10 rebounds marked his sixth double-double, and he is 14th nationally with a 63.4 percent clip. Cincinnati’s 11 double-doubles (by four players) leads the AAC.
Landers Nolley II has averaged 18.8 ppg and 9.3 rpg over his last four games since the first Houston matchup, a game in which he also made all four of his deep attempts. In AAC play, he is seventh in scoring (17.1 ppg) and 11th in rebounding (6.9), while his overall 44.3 percent clip from deep is 12th in the nation and best in the AAC. David DeJulius, who in three years is 42 points away from becoming UC’s 55th 1,000-point scorer, is second in AAC play with 6.0 assists per game and leads at 96 percent foul shooting (24-for-25).
All 14 of UC’s wins have come when leading at the half. The Bearcats are in the AAC-play top-3 for three-point and rebounding offense and assists while leading the pack at 9.1 treys per game. UC is 12-2 this year when scoring more than 70 points, something the Cougars have allowed just thrice all year. The Bearcats, winners of three-straight road games, boast nine wins against top-3 teams all-time, with the last coming against No. 2 Syracuse in the 2012 Big East Tourney, an eventual Sweet 16 run. Head coach Wes Miller, who turns 40 on gameday, padded his nation-leading under-40 win total with 217.
SERIES HISTORY
Cincinnati leads the all-time series 33-12, including an 11-11 mark as AAC rivals. The Bearcats also won 27 of the first 28 meetings (1957-2016). These future Big 12 foes faced each other in three-straight AAC Championship games, with UC coming out on top in 2018 and 2019. The two teams were also the top seeds in 2020, but the tourney never began due to COVID-19. UH won in the 2021 clash.
The Jan. 8 matchup between the teams saw Houston lead 35-28 at the break and score the first seven points after halftime to come away with it. Landers Nolley II and Mika Adams-Woods scored 24 of UC’s 28 in the period, going 6-for-6 from deep as well. The Bearcats did beat the Cougars at one of their many strengths: winning the glass battle 39-33.
These two teams faced off three times last year. On March 1 in Houston, the Cougars hit a three at the buzzer to take a 38-34 lead amidst a very back-and-forth period, but they opened a 48-38 lead at 14:15 and held UC at bay the rest of the way. In the AAC Quarterfinals, Cincinnati continued to improve against the Cougars, this time leading by 10 early in the second half. UH responded wih a 10-0 run of its own to lead for good by the 14-minute mark.
When Memphis knocked off No. 6 Houston on Feb. 12, 2022 in the Fertitta Center, Nolley II had a game-high 20 points (4-5 3FG).
MILLER’S PLACE IN HISTORY
The scope of college basketball history comes into play with Miller’s win total. The following numbers reflect wins as a Division I member via Sports-Reference.com, with each school in parenthesis the place of their 40th birthday.
Miller is tied for 15th overall in this category, and even six of the 14 ahead of him achieved their milestones before 1950.
Coach – Wins – Year
Phog Allen (Kansas)* – 339 – 1925
Bob Knight (Indiana)* – 307 – 1980
Henry Iba (Okla. State)* – 292 – 1944
Pat Page (Butler)* – 261 – 1926
Terry Holland (Virginia) – 256 – 1982
Forddy Anderson (Mich. St.) – 251 – 1959
Jim Valvano (N.C. State) – 250 – 1986
Eddie Cameron (Duke) – 234 – 1942
Chick Davies (Duquesne) – 233 – 1940
Digger Phelps (Notre Dame) – 232 – 1981
Billy Donovan (Florida) – 228 – 2005
Pat Kennedy (Florida State)* – 228 – 1992
G. Ott Romney (BYU) – 227 – 1932
Johnny Bach (Penn State) – 219 – 1964
Wes Miller (Cincinnati) – 217 – 2023
J. Fred Bohler (Wash. State) – 217 – 1925
Mike Krzyzewski (Duke)* – 215 – 1987
Howie Dallmar (Stanford) – 211 – 1962
Everett Dean (Indiana)* – 208 – 1938
Scott Sutton (Oral Roberts) – 204 – 2010
Larry Weise (St. Bonaventure) – 202 – 1973
*Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
COURTESY CINCINNATI ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
