No. 16 Kansas Loses to Cincinnati in Big 12 Tournament with Dickinson, McCullar Out

Kansas will not be cutting down the nets as the Big 12 tournament champion.

The Jayhawks, who are ranked No. 16 in the country and were the No. 6 seed in the men's basketball conference tournament, lost Wednesday's second-round matchup against the 11th-seeded Cincinnati Bearcats.

Cincinnati kept its Big Dance hopes alive with the dominant 72-52 victory, although things were certainly easier than they could have been had Kansas been at full strength.

The Jayhawks were missing their top two scorers in guard Kevin McCullar Jr. (knee) and big man Hunter Dickinson (shoulder). Both players were members of the All-Big 12 First Team and consistently led Kansas throughout the season.

Cincinnati took full advantage thanks to impressive performances from Dan Skillings Jr. (25 points and seven rebounds) and John Newman III (12 points and 10 rebounds). Its defense also held Kansas to an ugly 3-of-20 (15 percent) shooting from three-point range, which is one area where McCullar was missed.

K.J. Adams Jr. did what he could for the Jayhawks with 22 points, but it was nowhere near enough without the two go-to options.

The Bearcats now turn their attention to the quarterfinals, where they will face the third-seeded Baylor Bears.

Baylor figures to be fresher in its first tournament game with Cincinnati playing a third game in three days, but the Bearcats also have some momentum and are motivated by their attempts to keep their March Madness hopes alive with a conference tournament title.