KANSAS CITY, MO – With a little over two minutes to go, the Cincinnati Bearcats had an eight-point lead on UCF and were eyeing a quarterfinal match the next day with top-seed Arizona.
But the UCF Knights, losers of three straight games, were not about to lose a fourth. UCF, in just over a minute, tied the game at 58 thanks to three critical Bearcats turnovers. Nobody scored from there, making it UC’s first overtime game of the season.
UCF never trailed in the extra period, though Day Day Thomas got the Bearcats within one with a 3-pointer with 1:46 to play. Thanks to yet another turnover, UC would get just one more shot, a missed trey from Jalen Celestine. UCF didn’t score a basket over the final three minutes of overtime but held off the stunned Bearcats 66-65.
For a second straight year, the Bearcats go out in the second round of the Phillips 66 Big 12 tournament and this game will go down in UC history as another missed March opportunity.
“I’m absolutely heartbroken for them,” UC coach Wes Miller said of the Bearcats. “We did not play our best basketball today. Again, the turnovers (19) were certainly a factor, but we were in position to win the game. That says a lot about this team’s character.”
The Bearcats held a 12-point lead of 49-37 in the second half and led 58-50 with 2:17 to go before a tidal wave of turnovers led to the Knights’ dramatic, improbable comeback.
“I feel like our guys had to fight back on numerous occasions and I feel like they were able to do it,” UCF coach Johnny Dawkins said. “This team has done this all season long. They beat a very good Cincinnati team.”
Asked if UCF wanted the game more than the Bearcats, Dawkins was diplomatic.
“We approach every game like a championship game,” he said. “When these moments do occur, I think our guys are prepared for it because we talk about it all season long. As an added incentive, with everything that’s being talked about? Yeah, absolutely!”
The Bearcats had 19 turnovers, the same amount they had in their regular-season finale loss at TCU on March 7. Baba Miller led that pack with seven. Guards Thomas and Jizzle James combined for five more. Those three had more turnovers than UCF had as a team (10).
The Bearcats drop the “rubber game” of the series with UCF and fall to 18-15 on the season, the identical record they had a year ago at this point.
Moustapha Thiam had an 18-point, 16-rebound double-double in the loss and Thomas finished with 15 points. Celestine finished with 11 pointsand Keyshuan Tillery had 10 off the bench. Baba Miller had just four free throws, zero baskets, but 12 rebounds.
“It was a game where we were up by a lot,” Thiam said. “They just came back and scored. We battled, our guys competed, but it is just what it is.”
Asked about his future plans, Thiam had no specific answer.
UC led Utah 18-7 in bench points the night before and led UCF in that category 11-8 with Tillery scoring 10 of those in almost 23 minutes. The freshman had an experience, but not the one he had envisioned.
“We’ve just got to stay composed down the stretch,” Tillery said. “It’s a learning experience overall. Games like that are difficult to win.”
UCF goes to 21-10 and a likely NCAA Tournament bid. It’s their first win since beating BYU in Provo Feb. 24.
UCF got 17 points and 15 rebounds from Jamichael Stillwell and Riley Kugel added 15.
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Takeaways from Cincinnati Bearcats vs. UCF Knights in Big 12 Tournament
Which team seized moment?
UC jumped out 11-2, but UCF responded fairly quickly. The Bearcats again got the lead to 19-9, but UCF closed out the half with a 17-8 edge to be down by just two points.
With bracketologists listing UCF as “last four in” and UC as “first four out,” it was a consequential game and was physically played as such.
In the end, the UCF “no holds barred” comeback shows that they wanted to continue their March, and they were the ones who survived and advanced.
“We felt down by eight coming down the stretch, we needed to do more full-court, we needed to do more pressing to see if we could speed’em up, get some more turnovers,” UCF’s Dawkins said. “Fortunately, we were able to do that.”
Cincinnati Bearcats halftime edge
Coming into the game, UC was 17-3 when leading at the break and Wes Miller’s teams were 87-20 historically when up at intermission. It was just UC’s fourth loss of the season with a halftime lead and mark Miller’s career number at UC at 87- 21.
7th double-double of season for Moustapha Thiam
Early in the second half, Thiam reached double-double status for the seventh time this season and ninth overall. He had 18 points and 16 rebounds and another good game against his former team, albeit a loss.
Scoreless half for Baba Miller
Miller did not score in the first half and had four rebounds. After a technical foul with 4:37 to play, Miller did not play the rest of the first half. He would finish with 12 rebounds but no field goals and only four free throws.
All hands on deck?
UCF listed starting forward Jamichael Stillwell and reserve center Jeremy Foumena as “game time decisions.” At the same time, UC had everybody clear except Jalen Haynes, who will seek a medical redshirt. As expected, both big men played for the Knights.
Stillwell was a force with the 17-point, 15-rebound double-double. He also had three blocks. Stillwell has scored 56 points in three games this season vs. UC.
UCF wins physical battle
The Knights led 17-3 in second-chance points and 38-10 in points in the paint. UC led for nearly 34 minutes of the game, but that won’t matter Thursday when the tougher Knights will tangle with the Arizona Wildcats while UC will be contemplating its future.
“I wouldn’t say we got out-physicaled, but there certainly were some possessions and moments where we did,” Wes Miller said.
Did Cincinnati Bearcats contain Riley Kugel?
UCF’s top scorer, at nearly 15 points per game, had 19 in the UCF win over UC in Orlando. Kugal and guard Themus Fulks came in both shooting 40% from the perimeter. Between the two, Kugel only made one, but had had six other baskets, including two that forced overtime.
At the half, UCF was only 2-for-11 on triples. UC made 11 triples to UCF’s three overall, but lost.
What’s next for Cincinnati Bearcats?
Stay tuned. UC AD John Cunningham was on the trip and didn’t have an immediate answer to the future of the program, though surely there should be something on the horizon.
UC coach Wes Miller states UC Bearcats’ NCAA case
“If it’s about the best teams at this point, we’re one of the best teams in the country,” Miller said. “We’re an NCAA tournament team. I think we’ve won seven of our last 10 Big 12 teams. When’s the last time someone won seven out of 10 in the Big 12 and didn’t play in the NCAA tournament? I certainly feel we belong. I know tonight (vs. UCF) would have helped. It wasn’t like we got run out of the gym. We had a three or four-possession lead late in the game.”
Unfortunately, that may be the issue at hand. When leading with two minutes to go, UC was 16-1 this season. The second such defeat left many heads hanging low in the locker room.
Crown anyone?
The Bearcats now are in line to again go to the Crown Basketball Tournament in Las Vegas, as they appear doubtful for an NCAA bid. The Big 12 is contractually obligated to send the top two teams not in the NCAA Tournament via NCAA NET ranking to the Crown in Las Vegas. The Bearcats are in that category, assuming a Sunday snub from the Selection Committee.
The odd thing is, the Crown doesn’t begin until April 1. That’s the same day Coach Wes Miller’s buyout drops to $4.69 million, should that be something the UC brass factors into consideration. The transfer portal doesn’t open until after the NCAA Tournament, so that may weigh into who plays in the Crown and who doesn’t.
In addition to the Big 12 arrangement, the Big Ten and Big East are obligated to provide teams to the Crown, which has reduced its field from 16 to eight this season. Games will run during the NCAA Final Four week and the semifinals and finals of the NIT.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Takeaways from UC Bearcats loss to UCF Knights in Big 12 tourney
Reporting by Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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