by Tim Daniel
In a week that started so well for the Bearcats, things seemed to fall apart as the games went on.
After the defeat over Illinois in the first game in Kansas City, the Bearcats lost a hard-fought battle against the #13 ranked Arkansas Razorbacks on Tuesday night but looked to carry a lot of momentum coming home tonight to play Monmouth.
Cincinnati came out strong with an eight-point lead going into halftime, but then, the Hawks took over outscoring the Bearcats by ten in the half to take home the 61-59 victory.
The Bearcats shot just 4/28 from three and 9/20 from the free-throw line in the game and had another night where junior leader Jeremiah Davenport wasn't able to find his shot. Davenport shot 2/10 from the floor scoring just six points. Senior guard David DeJulius paced the Bearcats with a solid shooting day scoring 13 points on 5/10 from the field and was 2/2 from the free-throw line.
On the other side, Monmouth weathered the storm from UC and took over in the second half.
Seton Hall transfer Shavar Reynolds was 6/7 on field-goal attempts scoring 14 points, senior guard Marcus McClary lead all scorers with 18 points and also added six rebounds to his stat sheet. The name most people were obviously more interested in is Wes Miller's brother, Walker Miller who had 13 points and also hit an early three-point shot and acknowledged his brother after the basket.
At one point in the second half, the Bearcats were up 12 points and Monmouth star George Papas had yet to score. Papas only ended up with six points but added five assists, four rebounds, and only had one turnover.
Sibling Rivalry:
Coach Wes Miller mentioned he didn't feel like his team was ready to guard and also mentioned that he felt his team provided many matchup issues for his brother Walker, who was still able to overcome the game and help his team to the win. Walker, the former Tar Heel transfer looked very prepared for the game today.
Betting not kind to the Bearcats:
Coming into the game today, Cincinnati were -11 favorites per Draftkings Sportsbook, so if you bet the game and took the Bearcats... We're sorry.
Physicality:
The Bearcats have played with a ton of grit through the season, and even today in a losing effort, they have kept their effort. UC lead in points in the paint 28/22 and were close on rebounds losing just 38-36 on the boards.
Up next for the Bearcats:
A trip up to Miami (OH) to face the Redhawks. At this time, Miami is 5-0 but are in Malcomb, Illinois tonight facing the Western Illinois Leathernecks.
