Cincinnati Bearcats basketball tips off their 2024-25 campaign vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff

After a Midnight Madness atmosphere in the CareSource Charity Classic vs. Ohio State over two weeks ago, the University of Cincinnati Bearcats men’s basketball team plays a game that counts Monday night, facing Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Fifth Third Arena.

Coming off the high of defeating the Buckeyes in a charity exhibition and the low of falling to Pitt in a controlled “secret” scrimmage, Wes Miller is as excited as many fans to see what the men in red and black have to offer in 2024-25.

The Bearcats were picked No. 6 of 16 teams in the Big 12 and the five teams ahead of them are all in the first 10 of the Top 25 in both the AP and USA TODAY Preseason polls. Texas Tech, BYU and Kansas State also received votes in both polls and Arizona State received votes in the AP tally.

“I’m always grateful when I walk out of that tunnel that I coach at Cincinnati,” Miller said. “There’s a lot of people that care. Every time I run out of that tunnel I don’t ever take it for granted. I appreciate the people that are in their seats screaming and cheering for us.”

Come on feel the noise

Miller says Fifth Third Arena is one of the best environments in college basketball. At his weekly press conference, he implored fans to continue their vocal support this season but to do it even better.

New Cincinnati Bearcats forward Dillon Mitchell, who played here for Texas last January, says the crowd can definitely be a factor to an opposing team not familiar with the territory.

“I’m excited to be able to play in front of these fans,” Mitchell said. “I’m telling y’all, when they’re out there and they’re loud, it is frightening for the opposing team. They’re going to help us win games this year.”

Is Day Day Thomas day-to-day for the Cincinnati Bearcats?

The senior point guard who started all 35 games he played in last season injured his foot before he was to fly to Kansas City as part of the UC representation (Oct. 22) at Big 12 media days. He has since returned to basketball activities, but did not participate in the Pitt “secret scrimmage.”

“We’re just not going to go from zero to 100,” Miller said. “He’s shooting. I don’t know if he’s going to miss time or not. You have to have depth in college basketball. That was important to us as we were putting our roster together. We have depth. There’s a number of guys who collectively should be able to fill a void, but no doubt about it, I’ll feel a lot better if Day Day’s playing.”

3 keys for Cincinnati Bearcats to beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions

1. Get the kinks out early, play with controlled chaos

It would be somewhat normal for an early game to be sloppy. UC should expect sloppiness early, then adapt to the surroundings. Miller would prefer to play faster this season, so the expectation should be to frazzle the opponent, not be frazzled. What confuses the Golden Lions should appear to be another day at the office for the Bearcats. That said, last year’s UAPB team averaged over 80 points a game, so it’s not like they’ll throw it around for 30 seconds a possession.

2. Never take an opponent lightly

As CBS insider Jon Rothstein often writes early in the season, it can be the “epitome of brutality” losing a game to someone you essentially paid to defeat. Nine of Pine Bluff’s first 11 games are road pay days which include games at Tulsa, USF, Kansas State, Texas Tech and Texas. If you don’t want to be included in the “Buster Douglas beat Mike Tyson” category, take care of business.

3. Leave the court unassisted

With Tyler McKinley already out for the year with a knee injury and Thomas aggravating a previous foot injury, healthy bodies are essential. Imperative to a team’s success is the ability to walk off the court on their own two feet.

Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions

Tip: 7 p.m.

TV/Radio: ESPN+/700WLW

Series: UC leads 5-0 (Bearcats last won 105-49 Nov. 27, 2018)

Scouting report Arkansas-Pine Bluff (UAPB)

Record: 13-18 (8-10 SWAC) last season

Coach: Solomon Bozeman (fourth season, 30-63)

Offense: 80.1 ppg last season

Defense: 81.8 ppg last season

Projected starting lineup

(Position, Height, Stats)

Robert Lewis (F, 6’9″, 4.2 ppg last season)

Klemen Vuga (F, 6’9″, 2.3 ppg at Monmouth last season)

Zach Reinhart (G, 6’6″, 1.9 ppg last season)

Trejon Ware (G, 5’9″, 3.4 ppg last season)

Christian Moore (G, 5’11”, 1.3 ppg at North Texas last season)

Cincinnati Bearcats scouting report

Record: 22-15 (7-11 Big 12) last season

Coach: Wes Miller (fourth season, 63-43 at UC, 248-178 overall)

Offense: 74.7 ppg

Defense: 68.2 ppg

Projected starting lineup

(Position, Height, Stats)

Dillon Mitchell (F. 6’8″, 9.6 ppg at Texas last season)

Aziz Bandaogo (C, 7′, 6.6 ppg last season)

Simas Lukošius (G, 6’8″, 11.8 ppg last season)

Dan Skillings Jr. (G, 6’6″, 12.9 ppg last season)

Jizzle James (G, 6’3″, 8.8 ppg last season)

Players to watch

Monmouth transfer Klemen Vuga is a 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward who two seasons ago averaged 9.5 points and 5.3 rebounds at Monmouth and had a high game of 29 points vs. North Carolina A&T. He was on the 2021-22 Monmouth squad that knocked off UC 61-59 in November of that season but did not play in the game.

The Bearcats saw Dillon Mitchell go a perfect 6-for-6 from the field to finish with 12 points and seven rebounds against Ohio State. They also made 10 of their 26 3-pointerswith Simas Lukošius and Jizzle James both hitting a pair.

James seems to have improved defensively, which will help the team.

“To get to the next level, you’ve got to play both sides,” James said. “In this conference (Big 12) you’ve got to be a dog on defense. This is the best defensive conference.”

If Thomas doesn’t play, look for Bradley transfer Connor Hickman and holdover C.J Fredrick to get key minutes. Hickman averaged 14.5 points for Bradley and scored 14 against UC in the NIT. He shot over 40% from three-point range last season, while Fredrick hit nearly 43%.

Rankings

NCAA NET: Cincinnati No. 37 last season, UAPB No. 328

KenPom.com: Cincinnati is No. 17, UAPB No. 355

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bearcats men’s basketball season opener Arkansas-Pine Bluff Big 12