Scouting report: 3 keys for Cincinnati Bearcats basketball to win on road at West Virginia

Trying to recover from their most uneven loss of the season, the Cincinnati Bearcats basketball team is headed to Morgantown for a rematch with West Virginia Wednesday night.

Both teams were on the road Saturday, with UC taking on No. 10 Iowa State. West Virginia was in Waco against Baylor. Both played spirited games but home-court advantage ruled with the Bearcats fading in the second half to the Cyclones in Ames 81-70 and the Mountaineers falling in overtime to the Bears, 74-71.

“We’ve just got to go back, look at film and see what we’ve got to do better,” UC guard Day Day Thomas said. “We got outrebounded, so that’s something we’ve got to focus on in practice.”

The Bearcats were outclassed 37-19 on the boards against the bulkier Cyclones of Iowa State.

“I wasn’t pleased from where I was sitting with some of our awareness to go clear out weak side,” UC coach Wes Miller said. “Shoot, we work on that every day in practice.”

UC must go against grain to gain key Big 12 road win

Welcome to the Big 12 where the home floor is a considerable advantage. Both teams are now 15-10 and fighting for relevancy with West Virginia’s Big 12 record (6-8) slightly better than UC’s (5-9).

On Feb. 2, UC spotted the Mountaineers a 15-point halftime lead, then fell woefully short against West Virginia at Fifth Third Arena 63-50. UC had only one player in double figures as Day Day Thomas had 10 points. Jizzle James was held scoreless in 19 minutes and Aziz Bandaogo had just one basket in 18 minutes.

Since then UC has gone 3-1, with the Mountaineers just 1-3.

At WVU Coliseum last season, UC blew a 10-point lead with 6:22 remaining and was outscored 19-5 from there as the Mountaineers won 69-65. The Bearcats then beat West Virginia back-to-back on March 9 and March 12 scoring 182 points overall in those contests.

UC winning Wednesdays

UC is 3-0 this season with wins vs. Alabama State, at Colorado and at UCF. During Wes Miller’s four years with the Bearcats, they have enjoyed an 18-6 mark on Wednesday.

3 keys for Cincinnati Bearcats basketball at West Virginia Mountaineers

1. UC’s mantra should be ‘Let’s get Small’

Javon Small led West Virginia with 19 points and nine assists Feb. 2 at Fifth Third Arena and last year helped Oklahoma State knock off the Bearcats at home. The senior has battled UCF’s Keyshawn Hall for the Big 12 scoring lead this season and averages 18.6 points per game. At Baylor, Small had 22 points and played 40 minutes.

Small has been held below double-digits just twice, with both coming in home losses vs. Houston and BYU. Obviously, that would be a goal for the Bearcats in Morgantown Wednesday.

2. Holding teams below 70 helps UC Bearcats chances

West Virginia has had just four losses at WVU Coliseum, all in the Big 12. Arizona beat them Jan. 7, 75-56 after beating UC by five. Arizona State beat them 65-57 Jan. 21 after losing to UC by seven. The Mountaineers lost to Houston at home, 63-49 Jan. 29 and to BYU Feb. 11 73-69 after the Bearcats beat the Cougars three days earlier by 18 points.

The common denominator is West Virginia was held below 70 points in all four losses.

3. Winning boards should lead to winning games

UC beat West Virginia on the boards 33-31 Feb. 2, but dug themselves a 15-point hole at halftime and shot just 31%. In all of the West Virginia home losses, they were decisively outrebounded. UC will have to hold down 6-foot-8, 240-pound Amani Hansberry who pulled down 11 to lead both teams in their last game.

For motivation, the Bearcats are coming off a game on the glass at Iowa State where they were dominated 37-19.

“There’s always going to be some plays where they get you with size or positioning but I think we’re going to look at those possessions on tape and see an inability to clear out the weak side and go body-to-body,” Miller said.

Among UC’s rebounding deficiencies this season, Dan Skillings Jr. is more than two rebounds below his 6.4 average last season at 3.7 per game. Aziz Bandaogo, held to three rebounds at Iowa State, is also nearly two rebounds behind last year at 5.8 per game compared to 7.4 rebounds. Dillon Mitchell tops UC at 6.4 per game, but that’s more than a full rebound below his figures at Texas last year of 7.5 per game.

Cincinnati Bearcats at West Virginia Mountaineers

Tip: 7 p.m. Wednesday (WVU Coliseum (14,000)

TV/Radio: ESPN2/700WLW

Series: Even 12-12 (West Virginia won 63-50 at Fifth Third Arena Feb. 2)

West Virginia Mountaineers scouting report

Record: 15-10 (6-8 Big 12)

Coach: Darrian DeVries (second year, 15-10)

Offense: 69.4 ppg

Defense: 64.4 ppg

Projected starting lineup

(Position, Height, Stats)

Toby Okani (G, 6’8″, 8.9 ppg)

Jonathan Powell (G, 6’6″, 8.4 ppg)

Javon Small (G, 6’3″, 18.6 ppg)

Amani Hansberry (F, 6’8″, 9.4 ppg)

Sencire Harris (G, 6’4″, 5.8 ppg)

Cincinnati Bearcats scouting report

Record: 15-10 (5-9 Big 12)

Coach: Wes Miller (fourth season, 78-53, overall 263-188)

Offense: 72.1 ppg

Defense: 65.1 ppg

Projected starters

(Position, Height, Stats)

Simas Lukošius (G-F, 6’8″, 11.4 ppg)

Jizzle James (G, 6’3″, 12.2 ppg)

Dillon Mitchell (F, 6’8″, 10 ppg)

Day Day Thomas (G, 6’1″, 8.4 ppg)

Aziz Bandaogo (C, 7′, 8.1 ppg)

Players to watch

Javon Small has had an impact at every school he’s played from East Carolina to Oklahoma State last season to the West Virginia Mountaineers. Small averages just over 18 points a game and has had a high game this season 31 against Gonzaga. Small leads the Mountaineers in points, assists and steals.

UC’s James was held scoreless vs the Mountaineers in their last matchup, only the second time in his career that he didn’t score. Since then, his game has picked up and he seems to be playing with much more confidence. His games at Fifth Third Arena vs. BYU and Utah were his first back-to-back 20-plus-point games since the last two games of the NIT last March. He made it three when he scored 25 at No. 10 Iowa State, despite fouling out with nearly three minutes left.

Rankings

KenPom.com: West Virginia is No 46, Cincinnati is No. 54

NCAA.NET: West Virginia is No. 44, Cincinnati is No. 45