Bearcats Breakdown: Jaquon Parker

This edition of Bearcats Breakdown is about freshman Jaquon Parker. I don't know if his name is supposed to be spelled Jaquon or JaQuon. I also noticed I spelled his name wrong in the labels because I'm stupid. Anyway, on twitter, he lists his name as JaQuon, so we are rolling with that. Parker didn't come into the season with a ton of hype, but by the end of the year, he earned some for this upcoming season. His hype for the upcoming season is much better than a certain former Bearcats' who we won't mention by name, but feel we should tell you about since it's news. Hopefully things turn out well for him, as we hope they will turn out well for JaQuon Parker.

Quickly, we want to take a moment to mention John Wooden. I'm not going to write eloquently about his life, or passing, mainly because I don't write eloquently if you read the comments about me being mean. John Wooden was a great coach, and a better person. He might have cheated at UCLA according to bitter fans, but he was a winner. He was also a quote machine. His website, CoachJohnWooden.com, is amazing.

Someone who will use that pyramid of success, is JaQuon Parker. Let's look back at his freshman year.

Scoring

JaQuon Parker played 13 minutes a game in the 26 games he played. He started 8, most at the end of the year when Rashad Bishop was suspended. He averaged 4.2 points a game on 45% field goal shooting. Parker shot a respectable 36% from deep, one of the better percentages on the club. Parker had an offensive rating of 112.5. His effective field goal % was 55.4, and his true shooting percentage was 56. Those are pretty good numbers. What wasn't as good were Parker's free throw numbers. He got to the line at a high rate, but was only 20-33, 60%. That's a number that is going to have to get better with more opportunities, and more practice at the line.

Parker's best game scoring wise came out of nowhere really. With Lance Stephenson injured against South Florida, Parker got the start and exploded for 15 points on 6-8 shooting. JaQuon had been getting sporadic playing time before that, and for him to go off was completely unexpected. Parker went on a 6-0 run himself when USF cut the lead to 5 to push the lead back to 11. Parker had a 13 point game in the Big East Tournament win over Rutgers. Parker got that on 4-8 shooting, 3-6 from three. Parker had himself a 5-0 run in that game that pushed the UC lead to 8 with 3:30 left, which was huge because Rutgers made a run to close out the game. Parker also threw a horrible inbound pass in that game to hurt the UC cause, but that's neither here nor there. Parker's third double digit scoring game came against, yup, Texas Southern. He got 10 mostly from the line, going 6-9 from the stripe. Parker scored 9 against CSB, but his other notable game was against Louisville in the Big East Tournament. After the Cardinals got to Parker in the first meeting at Freedom Hall, JaQuon answered big in the BET. Parker had 8 points on 3-9 shooting, but had 9 rebounds. His buckets seemed to all be put backs. He gave UC a 2 point lead with a put back off a missed free throw, and gave UC a 7 point lead when he pretty much stole an offensive rebound away from Kyle Kuric, scored and was fouled.

At the other end of the spectrum, Parker had a pretty awful game, as did everyone else, in the Georgetown disaster. He didn't score at WVU, missing a pair of shots. He also struggled as mentioned at Louisville. Not playing a lot helps you not have terrible games that I can mention.

Rebounding

JaQuon Parker averaged 2.8 rebounds a game. I know, that's a lot. Parker got 0.8 offensive rebounds, and 2 defensive boards, 17% of the UC defensive boards while he was on the floor, a game. The reason Parker averaged so many boards, was because he was a rebounding machine. He pulled in 9 in the BET game against Louisville, 7 against Texas Southern, 5 at Louisville, 5 against Toledo, 5 against Weber State in the NIT, 5 against CSB, and 5 against Rutgers in the BET. He also had 4 out in Maui against Maryland, and 4 against South Florida. Rebounding is about determination, and few guards on the UC roster were determined to gather rebounds as JaQuon Parker.

Other

JaQuon Parker averaged 1 assist per game. His best was 5 in his USF breakout game. He put up 3 against Texas Southern and Louisville, proving without a shadow of a doubt when JaQuon Parker is racking up assists, UC wins. Parker had a career high of 2 steals in the Louisville BET game. His only block came in the win over USF. He got a lot accomplished in a short period of time.

Summary

JaQuon Parker had a pretty good freshman season once he got some run. The problem was, he didn't get that much run. Like mentioned up top, he only played in 26 games. I think there is room for him to be a player on this year's squad however. With only Sean Kilpatrick coming into the backcourt and Deonta Vaughn and Lance Stephenson and maybe Rashad Bishop out, he's going to have the chance at minutes. I think he has earned a spot. There are minutes to go around for Dion Dixon and Larry Davis, but I think, and the numbers think, they should go to JaQuon Parker.

Cincinnati 69 Louisville 66

F

How can you not love that picture? Lance Stephenson and Bearcat celebrating after a hard fought victory over Louisville in the second round of the Big East tournament is the stuff March is made of. It was a great, great win for the Bearcats, and one of the reasons that basketball is so much fun. Not only is it so much fun, but it's March, and the fun is taken to a higher level. A higher level is exactly what the Bearcats played at in the second half against Louisville Wednesday night. Let's get right into the recap.

Things didn't start so well for the Bearcats. Edgar Sosa scored the first 5 on a lay up and NBA 3, before Deonta Vaughn scored an NBA 3 of his own. Sosa hit a long 2 that Yancy Gates would follow with a put back. It was the first of many, many UC offensive rebounds. Terrence Jennings made a tough shot in the lane for Louisville, to be followed by an Ibrahima Thomas follow for UC. Sosa once again got to the rim, giving Louisville a 11-7 at the under 16. Darnell Wilks entered the game and knocked down a triple for the Bearcats, only to be countered when Reginald Delk scored 5 of his own off a pair of free throws and three. The 16-10 lead held to the under 12. Out of the break, Peyton Siva got a steal, raced up the floor and dropped a pass back for a Jennings jam. Cincinnati kept jacking up jump shots, namely 3s, but Wilks hit another one to cut the lead to 5. Lance Stephenson followed by getting fouled and making a pair of free throws. Preston Knowles made his only shot of the game, a 3 pointer, to push the lead back up. Stephenson was able to score on a beautiful reverse lay up, but Louisville came back with a Siva pass to Delk on the baseline for a lay up. Siva stripped Stephenson on the next trip, found Knowles who found Delk wide open for a 3 and a 26-17 Cards lead. UC was forced to call timeout. Out of the break, Larry Davis found Gates under the basket for 2, but Louisville got it back on a Rock Buckles follow of a Knowles miss. Wilks scored on a UC put back, but UC gave up more points when Buckles found Delk open for 3. At 6:53, Louisville lead 31-21. Gates drew a foul before the timeout, and after made both foul shots. He was immediately taken off the dribble by Samardo Samuels though. Jaquon Parker followed that action, with a good play and a freshman play. The good, a lay up high off the glass over Samuels on UC's third shot. The bad, he blew a 3 on 2 break by driving right in the middle of the 2 defenders, getting stripped by Knowles and losing the ball out of bounds. Sosa got the lead back to 10 by driving and dishing off to Samuels for a dunk. The lead went to 12 after the under 4 timeout, as Sosa made 2 free throws. Cincinnati missed about 3 tip ins on their next trip, but were able to score with a Thomas bucket after holding Louisville. Cashmere Wright drew a foul, but made 1 of 2. UC blew more easy points when Ibby couldn't convert a bunny off a behind the back pass from Stephenson. Louisville followed that with a Sosa 3 off an offensive rebound. UC got a Thomas dunk from Wilks as the last field goal of the half. The remaining points were scored by 1 Sosa free throw, and 2 Vaughn free throws for a 41-32 Louisville advantage.

The Bearcats were 11-41, 3-11 from deep, but 7-8 at the free throw line, with 20 rebounds, 11 offensive. Darnell Wilks led the way again in the first half with 8, Ibrahima Thomas 6-5, Yancy Gates 6, Deonta Vaughn 5, Lance Stephenson 4, Jaquon Parker 2, Cashmere Wright 1. For Louisville, the Cards shot 15-29, 6-9, 5-6 at the stripe, with 16 rebounds, 5 offensive. Louisville had 9 assists. Edgar Sosa powered the Cardinals with 15, Reginald Delk 13, Terrence Jennings 4-4, Samardo Samuels 4-3, Preston Knowles 3, Rock Buckles 2, and Peyton Siva had 4 assists.

Yancy Gates scored the first 2 of the half for the Cats, but Edgar Sosa hit a 3 and a 2 for the Cardinals, putting them up 12. That seemed to wake Cincinnati up. Deonta Vaughn hit a 3, Gates got a cherry pick lay up from Parker after a wild Sosa lay up attempt, and Gates got a cherry pick dunk from Vaughn after a terrible Sosa pass intended for Jennings. It was 46-41 at 15:09. Gates added 2 more free throws to complete his 6-0 run, before Stephenson drove the lane, kicked back to Thomas for an open jumper to complete Cincinnati's 11-0 run to cut the lead to 1. Samardo Samuels made 1 of 2 free throws for the Cards to push the lead back to two. But Stephenson drove inside to tie the score. Louisville got their first basket in 6:15 on a Samuels dunk from Sosa to retake the lead. Stephenson had a lay up attempt blocked excellently by Delk, and the Cards took advantage as Jared Swopshire found Samuels for another dunk. The Cats answered back with Stephenson getting to the rim, and Stephenson finding Wilks for a dunk and a foul at 9:48. Out of the media break, Wilks missed the free throw. But Cincinnati would take the lead on a Jaquon Parker put back, 53-51. Samuels scored over Gates on a hook shot that rattled home to tie again. Cincinnati retook the lead as we went into the under 8 timeout as Cash drove to the basket, scored, and was fouled. He missed the free throw, but Parker stole away the rebound. UC ended up turning the ball over, but Parker's effort was great to see. And he wasn't finished. Peyton Siva was stripped by Parker, who threw ahead to Lance Stephenson for a dunk. Parker then stole an offensive rebound away from Kyle Kuric on a Wilks airball, scored and was fouled. It was all effort on Jaquon's part, and he drilled the free throw for a 7 point lead, 60-53. That capped a 25-7 Cincinnati run. Out of a Louisville timeout, Samuels drew a foul, and made both shots. Lance Stephenson was bumped a little as UC tried running their motion, and fell down. While he bitched at the official, Sosa canned an open 3. UC got some momentum back with a Wilks follow on a offensive rebound. Wilks forced Samuels into a tough shot while playing great man to man defense, and when Samuels fell, Gates raced up the floor for UC, letting the Cats take advantage of the numbers with a dunk. Edgar Sosa cut the lead to 64-61 with 3:19 left on a 3 pointer. UC's toughness on the night was apparent for the next minute, as they missed 2 shots, but got both of the rebounds. One was thanks to Jared Swopshire going up one handed and batting the ball, instead of using 2 hands, allowing Parker to take it down. Parker was tremendous. UC couldn't get a third shot up. Mick Cronin called a timeout and reinserted Deonta Vaughn, who did not play much during the UC run, it was all Parker, Wright, Stephenson, Wilks, Thomas and Gates. Vaughn had the ball near the time line, got double teamed, turned and tried throwing a pass. The bad thing was Preston Knowles hand was right there, and he forced a steal, got the ball to Sosa, who raced down, drew a foul, and scored a lay up with 1:45 left. Sosa missed though. Jaquon Parker drew a foul on Knowles, but only made the front end of a 1-1. Knowles came down for Louisville and missed a long 3 pointer, but Samuels was able to tip the ball back out, only for Cash to chase it down. A bullet dodged. For some reason, with 57 seconds left, Sosa fouled Cash. Cash missed the front end, causing a rash of f bombs in UC fans homes. The Cardinals shot was taken by Jared Swopshire, who short armed a 12 footer from the left wing, causing a rash of f bombs from UofL fans. Especially since Delk was wide open. Lance Stephenson wanted the ball, and with 29.7 left, he got it. Lance made both free throws for a 4 point lead. Sosa raced down and took a wild NBA 3 that missed. Stephenson grabbed the rebound and was fouled again. This time, he missed both. Delk hit a Louisville 3 with 9.7 seconds left. UC got the ball in to Deonta Vaughn. Vaughn wasn't immediately fouled, and almost traveled. The foul came with 5.9 seconds left. The senior calmly nailed both and iced the game on defense. Sosa took the pass and seemed like he was expecting to be fouled from halfcourt on. When he went up for a shot high off the left wing, Vaughn stripped him, and UC took the victory, 69-66.

Cincinnati shot 25-72 34.7%, 4-18, 15-22 from the stripe, with 46 rebounds, 21 offensive. Jaquon Parker had 8 points, 9 rebounds, 7 offensive. Yancy Gates 16-5, Lance Stephenson 12-4-3, Darnell Wilks 12-7,  Deonta Vaughn 10, Ibrahima Thomas 8-8, and Cashmere Wright 2-5. Louisville was 24-55 43.6%, 10-18, 8-14 at the stripe, with 29 rebounds, 8 offensive. They were led by Edgar Sosa, 28-6, but 3-8 at the stripe, Reginald Delk 16, Samardo Samuels 13, Terrence Jennings 4-5, Preston Knowles 3, and Rock Buckles 2.

It was a great game, probably the best of the Big East tournament. Cincinnati showed so much heart, so much determination, so much desire the second half. They weren't going to lose, and they forced Louisville into their game. It was the best half Cincinnati played this season. I was proud watching them play that second half. Some of you can bitch and ask where this was all season, and while that's your incentive, and fair, you should chill out and enjoy the ride. The team has played hard the last 2 days, and they've won. Darnell Wilks has been out of this world the past 2 games. I don't know where this came from, but I'm glad it's here. And I'm even more glad we get to play tomorrow.

Cincinnati 69 Rutgers 68

(AP/Henny Ray Abrams)

Lance Stephenson saved the day for the Cincinnati Bearcats, as they were able to take home a round 1 win in the Big East tournament Tuesday night. Stephenson netted the game winning free throw with 1.8 seconds left following a furious Rutgers rally. Cincinnati plays the Louisville Cardinals tonight at 9:30ish, 20 minutes after the 7 pm game ends. Cincinnati was without Rashad Bishop, who was suspended for the Big East tournament due to conduct detrimental to the team. It's a shame. Hopefully Rashad realizes the error of his ways and plays in the next tournament UC is in. 

The game started with a 5 minute stalemate after the fireworks of Seton Hall and Providence. We had a 5-5 tie after a Gates put back, an NBA range 3 from Deonta Vaughn, Jonathan Mitchell scoring inside and a James Beatty triple. Hamady Ndiaye dominated the paint, as he had 4 blocks in the first 6 minutes, setting the Rutgers career record. Congratulations to Hamady. After the 4th block, he was fouled on the other end by his best friend Ibrahima Thomas and made 1 free throw. Gates followed by making 1 of 2, but the teams didn't make a field goal until the 13 minute mark when Mike Rosario hit a 3. That was followed by a Mitchell 3 and a 12-6 lead. Cincinnati scored 4 quick on a Cashmere Wright jumper, and on a Gates dunk from Wright when Rutgers turned the ball over after Dane Miller dribbled the ball off Rosario trying to break UC pressure. Rutgers scored 6 of the next 8 on threes by Rosario and Beatty around a Darnell Wilks jumper. But UC went on a 9-0 run to take a 22-18 lead off a Wright jumper, a Wilks lay up around a defender from Stephenson, a Parker 3 from passes from Lance and Wilks, and a traditional 3 point play by Cashmere Wright. The Scarlet Knights tied it on a Ndiaye dunk and a Coburn lay up. Rutgers and Cincinnati would play tight the rest of the half. UC scored 4 on a Wilks dunk back, and a Stephenson baseline jumper. RU got a Mitchell 3. UC got a Toyloy bucket off a drop off from Vaughn, answered by 2 Rosario free throws. A Darnell Wilks 3 to give UC a 4 point lead was met by a goaltend by Stephenson on a Coburn lay up off a great outlet pass by Rosario, and another Ndiaye dunk off a zone break. Rutgers took the lead into intermission after Cash had a lay up blocked, and with 1.8 seconds left, Coburn was fouled and made 1 of 2 for a 32-31 Rutgers lead. 

Rutgers shot 50% for the first half on 11-22 shooting. They were 6-12 from 3 and 4-8 from the foul line. The Knights grabbed 15 rebounds, 2 offensive and had 8 assists. They were lead by Mike Rosario 10, Jonathan Mitchell 8-5, James Beatty 6, Hamady Ndiaye 5-4-2, or 4 blocks, and Mike Coburn 3-2 assists. Cincinnati shot 35% on 13-37 shooting, were 3-8 from deep and 2-3 from the foul line. The Cats grabbed 19 rebounds, 9 offensive. They were lead by Darnell Wilks 9-3, Cashmere Wright 7-2 assists, Yancy Gates 5, Deonta Vaughn 3, Jaquon Parker 3, Lance Stephenson 2-6-3 assists, and Steve Toyloy 2.

Deonta Vaughn started the second half with a 3 pointer to put UC back in front, but it was answered by 3 Ndiaye free throws. We stayed tied until the under 16 media break, but there was lots of scoring. Gates scored on a lob from Thomas on a nice press break by Vaughn, Rosario and Jaquon Parker traded 3s, Dane Miller made 1 free throw, followed by Parker making 2 free throws, only for Jonathan Mitchell to score a basket with a foul and covert the free throw. The Knights took advantage of Cashmere Wright falling asleep at the wheel when they got an open 3 from Rosario after a high pass. It looked like the ball was going out of bounds, and Cash turned and ran, but it didn't. UC crashed the glass hard all night, as Toyloy scored on a tip in of a Thomas miss, but Coburn went right to the rim in transition to score. The 46-43 Rutgers advantage would hold through the under 12 timeout, and grow after on a Coburn long 2. It was at this point, Lance Stephenson started taking over. Stephenson scored on a nice move inside and off a tip in, around a Mitchell 2. UC was in full bomb threes mode here, but Rutgers couldn't really capitalize much. Dante Rosario got to the rim by splitting the defense, but Cash found Gates for an interior shot to start a UC run. Ibrahima Thomas scored off a turn around jumper to pull UC to within 1, 52-51. At the 7:25 mark, Lance Stephenson pulled down a rebound, went on a one man fast break, scored a lay up, was fouled, and made the free throw. On the inbound, Stephenson stole the errant pass, drove to the rim and scored with a foul. And again he made the free throw to put UC up 5. Austin Johnson scored his only 2 on a jump shot off a ball screen, a play Rutgers ran all night. But, Jaquon Parker had a personal 5-0 run by picking up a loose ball off a Cincinnati shot attempt, and by drilling a 3. That 11-2 run put UC up 62-54 with 3:31 left. Rosario and Rutgers would come back. Rosario got the line and made 1 of 2. Gates wiped that out by making 1 of 2 for UC. But, Gates would miss an easy put back on the next UC possession, allowing Mitchell to get the rebound and hit Rosario with a beautiful baseball pass, drawing a foul on his lay up attempt. He made both. Rutgers fouled Parker after the inbound, but Jaquon missed the front end of a 1-1. Rutgers missed 2 wide open three chances by Mitchell and Rosario though. But, they hung tough and drew a 5 second closely guarded call on Deonta. Beatty immediately went to the rim and the lead was 63-59 with 54.7 to go. UC broke the Rutgers press, and when Mitchell fell down, Vaughn hit Thomas for a huge lay up. Rosario made a quick lay up for Rutgers, who called their last timeout with 38.7. Vaughn got fouled on the inbound, and made both, but UC fouled Coburn as he drove, and he made both keeping the lead at 4. With 2 timeouts left, Jaquon Parker, who played great, made a stupid play by not calling timeout when he couldn't get the ball in, had the ball slip out of his hands and onto the floor, where Mitchell dove on it and was fouled by Vaughn. Mitchell made both and with 29 seconds left, it was a 2 point game. UC called 2 timeouts in a row to get a good inbound play, and they did as Vaughn was fouled with 23 to go. He missed the first free throw, and made the second. Rutgers took the inbound pass up in a hurry, and Dante Rosario hit a twisting 3 as he was trying to jump into Larry Davis for a foul. With visions of St John's and the last trip to the Garden dancing in UC fans heads, Lance Stephenson gave us visions of UConn. Lance took the ball up court, and drove hard to the rim, drawing a foul. He calmly drilled the first before Mick Cronin told him to miss the second. He did, and Rutgers three quarter court heave was short and UC survived and advanced.

Cincinnati shot 26-69 37.7%, 6-20 from deep and 11-18 at the stripe. They gathered 44 rebounds, 19 offensive. UC was lead by Stephenson 13-9-5 assists, Parker, who started in place of Bishop, 13-5, Gates 10-5, Vaughn 9, Wilks 9, Wright 7-4-3 assists, Thomas 4-13, and Toyloy 4. What a beast Ibrahima Thomas has been on the boards lately. Him and Lance Stephenson are playing great, and give a lot of hope for improvement next season. Rutgers was 22-51 43%, 9-24, 15-23 at the stripe, with 28 rebounds, 4 offensive. They had 16 assists. Rosario had 26, Mitchell 15-10, Coburn 9, Ndiaye 7-8-5 blocks, Johnson 2, and lastly but not least, Miller 1-5-8 assists. 

This was a big win. The team hadn't pulled out a close game late in a long, long time, and this was important. It's on to bigger and better things, and those things are the Louisville Cardinals. It's tournament basketball, enjoy it friends. 

The Bench

Because everyone and their sister wrote about Deonta Vaughn struggling yesterday (I'm looking at you Mike DeCoursey and the Enquirer), I decided to write about the bench play. With Vaughn struggling, and Lance Stepheson being handcuffed at times, who is picking up their slack off the pine?

The best way to do this is to break down every game and see how well the bench played statistically. We are just breaking down UC's bench, not the starters. The opponent numbers are just bench numbers, no starters. I got all the box scores from ESPN, so if they are wrong with who started, it's their fault. The high is for the bench high, not the game high. Keep that in mind. This is long, so there is a jump.

Cincinnati 92 Providence 88

(Enquirer)

Cashmere Wright's career high 24 propelled the Bearcats to their second highest point total of the season, and win 14 (14-7 5-4), as the Cats outgunned the Providence Friars (12-9 4-5) 92-88. Cash's 24 were the 6th time a Bearcat scored 20 this season. It was also a UC season high, and UC high in any game against Providence. The Friars are known for not playing the best defense, and the Bearcats sure took advantage of that Saturday night, shooting 32-58 for a whooping 57%. The Bearcats also kept up the good 3 point shooting by going 8-18. Free throwing shooting was terrible, and it almost let the Friars back in the game. The Cats were 20-41. Awful. Rashad Bishop had 16-6 for Cincinnati, Lance Stephenson (9 rebounds) and Deonta Vaughn 12, and Darnell Wilks surprised with 10. Wright also had 4 boards, 5 assists and 3 steals. For PC, Sharaud Curry matched a career high with 27. Jamine Peterson had 19, Marshon Brooks 12, and Vincent Council put up 10-5-6 assists. The Bearcats kept serve at home, which is important as they head back on the road where they have struggled. Let's take a look at how the game played out.

Action started with the teams putting shots on each other's faces. Providence made 3 triples to start the game, before Cashmere Wright scored UC's first 7. Peterson would make another 3, and PC lead 16-12 4 minutes in. Providence would nail their first 6 from deep in a lights out start. Rashad Bishop scored 8 of his points early in keeping the Cats close. Lance Stephenson did not start, and didn't enter until the 14 minute mark. He must be having problems with the ankle. Providence would build a 6 point lead as we hit the under 12 timeout, 24-18. Darnell Wilks entered the game and had a scoring explosion. Well as far as Darnell Wilks goes. Wilks scored off a hook, a left hand lay up, and a monster dunk back (pictured here). Wilks had 4 points the last 5 games, and scored 6 in 1:21. Stephenson added some points around a Peterson jumper, and the Cats had tied the game. Something unseen this season occurred after Marshon Brooks made a Friars 3. Lance Stephenson hit a 3 pointer for Cincinnati. This is the first time IN HIS CAREER Lance has made 3s in back to back games. No joke. The teams would trade the lead for the rest of the half with fast paced action. Wright would hit Bishop to give UC it's first lead, and it's second after Cash hit a 3 of his own. PC answered with a Duke Mondy 3. Curry, Vaughn, Peterson, Stephenson and Bilal Dixon, Vaughn again, and Wright all scored as the half came to a close at 44 all. Providence shot 50% in everything the half. 17-34 8-16 2-4. Peterson lead the way with 14-3-2 blocks, Curry had 9, and Coucil had 4 boards, 3 assists. UC shot 17-33 5-11 5-8, lead by Wright's 13-3 assists-3 steals. Bishop had 10, Lance 7, and Wilks 6. One player who did nothing was Yancy Gates. There were lots of people who though Yancy would have a big day against PC, but he was invisible for the most part.

Cincinnati started the second half by jumping out to a 5 point lead. Ibrahima Thomas scored 2 of his 4, and Rashad Bishop hit from 3. Peterson hit a 3, and Vaughn followed with his only 3 for UC. The Friars scratched even with Peterson's last basket for the game, and 2 free throws by Curry. The Friars took a 3 point lead at 60-57 after a Council 3 and a steal and breakaway dunk on Darnell Wilks' head by Marshon Brooks. That would seem to fire the Bearcats up. Yancy Gates scored his first field goal on a putback dunk, and followed with a steal as Providence was bringing the ball up the court. PC would foul, and the score would be 60-59 at 11:57. After the break, Cash got to the rim, scored, and got fouled. He would miss the free throw, but Lance Stephenson would get the rebound and get fouled. He would miss both though. On the next trip for UC, Cash would miss a rare field goal attempt, but Bishop cleaned it up for a 3 point UC lead. Cash picked a Providence pocket and raced down the court for a dunk. Stephenson followed that with a lay up, and UC was on a 10-0 run. Peterson would miss 2 free throws, PC was 9-18 at the stripe all night, and Cash would hit a dagger 3 for a 10 point UC lead. The lead stayed 10 down to the 3:58 mark, with UC ahead 75-65. Providence would press, and UC took advantage. The Cats broke pressure for a Gates dunk off a nice pass from Wright, a Gates alley oop from near half court by Lance, and 2 Stephenson free throws for a 81-67 lead. The Cats would let the lead slip due to poor free throw shooting. Deonta Vaughn hadn't missed a free throw in Big East play, and the percentages caught up to him. Vaughn was 5-10 on the day. Cash was great from the field, but only 3-7 at the stripe. My best friend Dion Dixon entered the game with 2 minutes left and UC up 12, and continued the funk he was in during the Louisville game. Dixon committed a turnover, after Vaughn made 2 free throws, would miss 2 fts, and Curry hit a PC 3. Dixon would then throw away the inbound pass up 8, but PC couldn't capitalize. Vaughn hit 1 free throw. The Friars missed a shot on their next possession, and fouled Wright, who made both. Was an 88-77 lead with 39.7 left safe? No. Curry made a lay up, Jaquon Parker (who only played 9 minutes, had 6 points 3 rebounds) made both free throws. On the other end, PC got a traditional 3 point play by Brooks. Vaughn made 1 of 2, and Curry drilled a 3. Cash missed both foul shots, and Curry made another 3 to cut the lead to 3 with 6.6 left. Parker would add to the drama by missing his first free throw. But Parker iced the game with his second, and provided us with the final. 

All in all, it was a nice win. The defense seems to be going to hell, which is a very bad sign with offensive minded Notre Dame on Thursday. It was nice to win, despite nothing from Gates and Toyloy. Gates had 7-7, and Toyloy had 3 turnovers to 1 point, 1 rebound. The free throw shooting was horrendous. Bishop was 1-4, Wright 3-7, Vaughn 5-10, Stephenson 3-6, and Dixon 0-2. The offensive rebounding was gone as well, only 8. The Bearcats couldn't afford to lose this game, and winning it was nice. Let's hope Mick has the boys ready to make a run, because the going is getting tough from now on. 

Know Your Opponent: Providence Friars edition

The Bearcats look to bounce back after a tough loss at Louisville, and nearly a week off, as they host the Providence Friars Saturday night at 8 on ESPNU. The Friars are coming off a huge win over Connecticut Wednesday. The Friars and Bearcats are both 4-4 in the Big East. This is a pivotal game as a result. The first round bye is huge in the Big East tournament, and there is some other tournament in March. How do the 13-7 Bearcats and 12-8 Friars stack up? What a great question. See the answer after the jump.
Last thing. If you want to read about Providence until your eyes bleed, check out our good friends FriarBlog and  Friars Basketball. I'm pretty sure there's nothing to do in Rhode Island besides talk about Providence and watch Family Guy.

Know Your Opponent: Louisville Cardinals edition

The Cincinnati Bearcats take their last trip to Freedom Hall Sunday at noon to take on the Louisville Cardinals. The Bearcats have played the most games of any Louisville opponent at Freedom Hall, 41, and have won the most, 14. The Bearcats also won the 1962 National Championship on that very floor. I told you those facts would be in the preview. I fully expect Lance Stephenson to play. I don't know how limited he will be with his ankle injury, but the Bearcats chances of winning improve if Born Ready is in the lineup. This is an important game for both the 13-6, 4-3 Cats, and the 12-7, 3-3 Cards. Louisville has dropped their last 3 Big East games, while Cincinnati has won 2 straight. Louisville doesn't want to dip under .500 before they travel to West Virginia. Cincinnati has a chance to climb back to 2 games over .500 in conference before heading home next week to play Providence. Louisville has had the opposite problem of Cincinnati in the Big East. While UC hasn't been able to score, Louisville hasn't been able to stop anyone, giving up 85 points a game during their losing streak. Something has to give. Will the Bearcats add to Louisville's misery, or will the Cards sink their claws into the Bearcats? Before we hit the numbers, check out the awesome Card Chronicle. There are more Louisville blogs listed on the right, but this is the one that I visit the most and recommend.

Oh Say Did UC?

Time to hit up the Cincinnati news on this Friday afternoon. Just a quick site bit, the Louisville preview for the game Sunday afternoon will probably go up tomorrow. If it somehow doesn't, it will be up Sunday morning well before noon. Quick fact that will be be in the preview. The Bearcats have played the most, and won the most at Freedom Hall more than any Louisville opponent. Plus, the Cats won the 1962 National Title in Freedom Hall. Let's hit some news.

• I can't find anything on the status of Lance Stephenson. Since Born Ready was labeled day to day, I expect him in the lineup Sunday at noon.
• Speaking of Lance, here is an SI article that (coughhackcough) Paul Daugherty wrote. This is like a week old, but I'm pretty sure I didn't post a link and I know you get all your UC news here. Right? Say yes for my fragile ego. 
• This article from CNati questions if Jaquon Parker is the missing piece. I hope that he can step in and play the point, and that would be huge. I'm not totally against giving Cashmere Wright another look in spurts. I'm all for Parker starting Sunday.
• Louisville was taken down by Seton Hall last night in a nightmare scenario. There was some controversy at the end. Jerry Smith made a 3 with .7 remaining. As Seton Hall was set to inbound, there was a whistle and the player with the ball took 2 steps on the court. All the players turned towards their benches, so that could be chalked up to confusion. However, Seton Hall's inbounds pass was tipped back out of bounds. The inbounder would run the line, an absolute clear violation, and Seton Hall would inbound and make free throws. Youtube: here. 
• The Wall Street Journal decided to have their yearly piece about how awesome the Big East is. Worth a read, or otherwise I wouldn't have linked to it. 
• Luke Winn writes a great Power Rankings on SI every Thursday. UC isn't mentioned, but it's one of my favorite reads of the week. Good job Luke.

That about does it on the basketball news. Let's hit the gridiron.

• Another SI bit. Stewart Mandel, from Cincinnati, did a report card of the coaching hires. Spoiler alert: Butch Jones got an A-. Louisville's Charlie Strong got the best grade, A+, and South Florida's Skip Holtz received an A-. Big East AD's are hitting it out of the park this year on paper.
• Dyjuan Lewis, a 4 star receiver from Indianapolis, recommited to Cincinnati. Nice job getting him back Butch Jones. Great decision Dyjuan.
• Here is a slightly dated Big East recruiting breakdown. Lewis answers a question asked in the piece, and is UC's best recruit. 
• QB recruit Luke Massa is being wooed by Notre Dame. The St. X star said "Then (on Thursday) Notre Dame offered (a scholarship). I was definitely pretty excited. Who wouldn't be excited about an offer from Notre Dame? I'll be visiting there Jan. 30, and then make my decision after that." Great. Sounds like he might be going.
• Alex Daniels and Aaron Webster were named to the Texas vs. The Nation all star game. Good for them. 
• Mel Kiper has his rankings up. They are insider so no link. Tony Pike fell out of his top 5 QBs. Mardy Gilyard is his 4th best WR. Armon Binns is 2 on the list for next year.
• Our main man Josh Katzowitz has an interview with Butch Jones up on GoBearcats. 

Finally, Brian Bennett at ESPN's Big East blog has a shit load of UC related things. You should read his blog, but then forget about it when I link to stuff about it. The following bullets are all his.

• Big East games of the Decade: UC v. Pitt #3. UC vs South Florida from October 2007 #9.
• Coaches of the Decade: #1 Brian Kelly. Don't boo or get angry, just let the last BK mention be a good one.
• Programs of the Decade: UC #5. Top 4: Miami, West Virginia, Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh.
• Half Decade Team: WR Mardy Gilyard, OG Trevor Canfield, CB Mike Mickens and P Kevin Huber.
• Big East Game of the Year: 

1. #7 Cincinnati vs West Virginia. 
2. #5 Cincinnati vs Connecticut
3. #1. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh

That didn't end confusingly at all. Thank you so very much for taking the time to read the blog. Shout out to whoever read this in Belgium. Don't forget to check back tomorrow for the Louisville preview. It won't be up in the morning, probably the afternoon. There will be the normal quick result post and the full reaction Monday. As for the rest of the week, I'm not sure. The Cats don't play until the next Saturday, so if you have any ideas for what you want me to write about, leave a comment. 

Cincinnati 78 South Florida 70

(Cincinnati Enquirer)

The Bearcats were powered by Deonta Vaughn's 20 points, and an unlikely source to beat South Florida Wednesday night. With Lance Stephenson on the shelf due to an ankle injury he suffered in practice Tuesday, Jaquon Parker entered the starting line up and put in 15 points to go with 4 rebounds and 5 assists. Rashad Bishop had a nice game as well with 15 points. UC improved to 13-6, 4-3, and South Florida fell to 11-7, 1-5. The Bulls were powered by Dominique Jones who scored 21. But, it took him 19 shots to get there. He did have 6 boards and 4 assists. USF also got good performances by Chris Howard (16-10) and Jarrid Famous (14-7-2 blocks). The Bearcats had a great offensive game shooting 56% from the field. They shot 36% from 3, but a woeful 13-23 at the free throw line. USF shot 44%, 17% deep, and 13-17 at the stripe. Let's take a look at how the Bearcats got the win.

As soon as the ESPN2 coverage kicked off, we found out Lance wasn't playing and that the starting line up was Bishop, Yancy Gates, Vaughn, Parker and Steve Toyloy. Parker got right into the grove by making the Bearcats first shot, a 3. Yancy Gates powered a 10-4 Cats start with 6 points, but picked up 2 silly fouls and sat on the bench from the 15 minute mark on. South Florida would use that momentum to go on 10-3 run capped by a Dominique Jones lay up for the lead. Jones had 6 of the first USF 14. The teams traded makes before UC went on a run that featured a put back by Ibrahima Thomas, his only 2, an alley oop lay up from Vaughn to my best friend Dion Dixon, and a Vaughn lay up and 2 free throws to take a 23-16 lead halfway through the half. That was a really long sentence. USF wouldn't lay down here either storming back into the lead 24-23 thanks to 4 of Mike Mercer's 10. UC, believe it or not, settled into taking 3s at this juncture with Parker, Dixon, and Darnell Wilks, who played awful, missing. Rashad Bishop would break a 26-26 tie with a 3 and UC would hold the lead the rest of the game. Spoiler alert. UC was able to pop the lead to 8 on a Parker lay up, Bishop lay up and a Vaughn 3. Jarrid Famous had 8 points in the half, and broke up that Cats run with a lay up of his own. Steve Toyloy would get those points back on a dunk off a batted around offensive rebound. The half ended with Deonta Vaughn wisely getting fouled while attempting a 3 and netting all 3 freebies for a 41-32 UC lead at the half. Both teams shot 50%, USF 13-26 UC 15-30. USF was 0-6 from 3 and 6-7 at the stripe, while UC was 4-11 and 7-9. Scoring wise, Jones had 10, Famous 8 and Mercer 6 for the Bulls. For the Bearcats, Vaughn had 13, Bishop and Gates 6, and Parker and Toyloy 5. UC turned the ball over just twice that half. The difference was the 3 point shooting, gasp!, and the Bearcats ability to offensive rebound.

The foes swapped buckets to start the second half. Yancy Gates wasn't a fan of the action, so he picked up his 3rd foul with 17:30 left. Steve Toyloy would have a dunk where he went from one side of the basket to the other, and the Cats lead by 10 at the first media break. The Bulls would continue to chip away and fall back behind. A 3 on 1 break for a Jones dunk to make the score 49-43 was met with a Deonta Vaughn 3 on the other end to push the lead to 9. Yancy Gates would re-enter the game at the 14 minute mark, and still not be impressed and get his 4th foul and head back to the bench with 13:51 left. The Bulls cut the lead back to 5 when Chris Howard hit the first USF 3 with the shot clock running down. Jaquon Parker would not stand for it, and go on a 6-0 by himself. Parker hit a jumper, free throws and a lay up to give the Cats a 58-47 lead. Biggie McClain would extend the lead to 12 by taking, and making, his first free throw of the season. He ruined the perfection by missing the second. With 8 minutes left, the Bulls would make their last run. Dominique Jones hit his only 3, Bishop would make a UC jumper, and Jones would score a lay up. Cashmere Wright played 4 minutes and the only stat on the box score was a turnover as he threw a pass Anthony Crater picked off and took for a lay up with 5:49 to go. Mick Cronin would call time out, but the next trip down the court Rashad Bishop threw a pass right to Crater, and Crater took the ball to the rim for the last of his 4 points and made the score 61-56. The next sequence would seal the game. Dion Dixon banked in a j from the free throw line that was as ugly as it sounds. Rashad Bishop would score a lay up on a nice inbounds play to make the lead 7. The star of the night Jaquon Parker took his man down on the box and nailed a turnaround jumper for his final points and made the UC lead 9. The last major gasp for USF was airballed by Crater with 3:24 left. Vaughn made a lay up to get the lead to 11. Chris Howard came back with his last 3 to cut the lead to 8, but USF's press was broken, ending in a lay up by Gates. The last 2 minutes were spent with USF trying to score, and UC at the line, where they weren't very good. Rashad Bishop went 1 of 2, but got a dunk off the rebound of his miss. Yancy Gates would miss both. Larry Davis missed his first 2 free throws of the year. South Florida didn't score, so it didn't really matter much. But you would like to see the men iron it out from the line.

All in all, this is a good win for the Bearcats. Like I mentioned earlier, this wasn't so much a must win as a can't lose. If the Cats lost this one, along with losing to Seton Hall and St John's, they would have been in trouble in the Big East. Instead, they are a game over .500 and can get back to 2 games over as they travel down I-71 to face the Louisville Cardinals Sunday afternoon. One last time, I want to mention Jaquon Parker. He was that good tonight. If he can step into the point guard role that UC needs, it could be the break the Cats need to get the offense going. Steve Toyloy and Rashad Bishop played very well too. Toyloy had 9-8 in a game Gates spent much time on the bench. The rebounding needs to shape up, because Louisville hits the glass hard, especially on the offensive end. Let's enjoy this one until Sunday.

Bearcats throw down on Bulls

(Enquirer/Joseph Fuqua III)

The Cincinnati Bearcats added their 13th win to 6 losses and 4th win against 3 Big East losses in a win over South Florida (11-7 1-5) Wednesday night. Bearcat star Lance Stephenson injured an ankle in practice and was held out. News didn't break until before tip off. The man who started in his place was Jaquon Paker, and he took advantage. Though he didn't lead UC in scoring, Deonta Vaughn had 20, Parker had 15-4-5 assists. Rashad Bishop helped fill the Stephenson void with 15. Steve Toyloy (pictured) had a solid 9-8. For the Bulls, Dominique Jones lead the way with 21-6-4. Chris Howard and Jarrid Famous both had solid games. Howard had 16-9, and Famous 14-7-2 blocks. The Bearcats shot 56% for the night, and held the Bulls to 44%. The teams seemed to swap runs. UC would have a 9-0 run, and the Bulls would counter with a 7-0 run. But, at about the 4 minute mark after USF cut the lead to 5, UC would go on a 6 point run to seal the deal. Nice win for the Cats. More tomorrow.