Cincinnati Bearcats Searching for Consistency

Heading into Saturday evening's match-up with Notre Dame, the University of Cincinnati Men’s basketball team was a group struggling to find a rhythm, and struggling to close out opponents.

The Bearcats were coming off of a mind-boggling collapse late in the game at St. Johns and had drawn heavy criticism for giving away a game in which they turned the ball over twice in the final 10 seconds.  In the game against the Irish however, Cincinnati seemingly borrowed a little Irish luck and won the game 60-58 using tough rebounding and a strong defense that held Notre Dame well below its season average of 80 points per game.

Thus has been the story for Cincinnati this season.

The Bearcats opened the season finishing second at the Maui Invitational, losing to Gonzaga in the championship game after a highly questionable non-call ended the game with Cincinnati trailing by two at the end of overtime.

They then put up 94 points in a route of Texas Southern before struggling with a Miami (OH) squad that was far out classed in terms of talent. With a 6-1 record under their belts, the team headed just down the street to take on Xavier in the Cross town Shootout.

The rivalry lived up to its heated history as tempers flared and benches cleared on one occasion. The game went to double overtime and Cincinnati fell by four after again failing to hold a lead of the same margin late in the first overtime.

What Cincinnati could have used as a learning opportunity, turned into a continuing nightmare. The Bearcats followed up the heartbreaking loss to its rival Xavier by getting thumped by a decent, at best, UAB team by 17 points on the road. While UAB is 13-2, it is still the same UAB team that has lost to Kent State and Virginia.

Therein lays another problem, road games. The Bearcats have lost only one game at home, against Pittsburgh. While going 1-4 away from Fifth Third Arena (not counting games played in Maui) with the lone win coming against lowly Rutgers by seven.

If Cincy can’t find a way to play better on the road, they will have more performances like the one against UAB in store for their fans.

The Cats apparently had  ridden themselves of whatever had been ailing them, and went on to win their next four games, including a tilt against a then 10th ranked Connecticut team thanks to two clutch free throws from freshmen Lance Stephenson.

Following a loss to a surprisingly good Pittsburgh Panthers team, and a win over Cal State Bakersfield, the Bearcats went to New York to take on Seton Hall. Cincinnati turned in one of its worst performances of the year and then did so again in the return trip against St. Johns.

With back to back uninspiring losses in league play, Cincinnati had begun to kiss its NCAA Tournament chances goodbye. With Luke Harongody and the Irish coming into Fifth Third Arena, a third straight loss looked imminent.  Then something happened. That 60-58 win happened. Oscar Robertson reportedly getting testy with the Cincinnati coaching staff happened. 

Something appeared to have ignited the Bearcats defense and the offense gained some structure with that game winning play call. Fans that showered the football team and new coaching staff with cheers at halftime were suddenly back on the Bearcat basketball bandwagon. Morning radio shows were no longer being flooded with calls demanding that Coach Cronin be fired.

Despite the positives, all is not rosy in Cincinnati. This is still the same team that got thumped by UAB, and lost a game in 10 seconds at St. Johns. Lance Stephenson is still playing well below the expectations everyone had placed on him to start the season, senior Deonta Vaughn has been invisible at times, and while the team has had flashes of brilliance, it has yet to do so as a whole. 

With only twelve games remaining, this team is being forced to gel in order to take advantage of their collective talents. Stated more simply, in the words of Coach Cronin, "What we have to do, in the last 10 seconds, is not blow the game.

Now, as Cincinnati lies on the brink of being on the outside looking in come March, the team needs only to not blow games.

The Bearcats have a tough remaining schedule, including games at Louisville, West Virginia, and Georgetown, as well as home games against Syracuse, Marquette, Villanova, and Providence, the road ahead is not going to be kind to a Bearcats team that struggles to play smart on a regular basis.

However, if this team can play with confidence and toughness, the talent exists to make its return to the NCAA Tournament, a place where Cincinnati basketball belongs. For a program that has had to overcome coaching changes, an empty roster, injuries, and NCAA eligibility issues, all the Bearcats want is the chance to go dancing.