The University of Cincinnati Bearcats entered Wednesday's night NIT team game feeling like a team placed in the wrong tournament.
In a 76-62 blowout of Weber State, they played like it.
As Darnell Wilks rose above the Wildcats defenders for alley-oop dunks and Deonta Vaughn ascended to the all-time UC record for 3-pointers and assists, the Bearcats overwhelmed the Big Sky regular season champs.
This tournament, so much about motivation with teams jilted and searching for respect, found a Bearcats team driven by disrespect and still stewing from disappointment.
Prior to the tip-off in front of a sparse crowd of 2,410 at Fifth Third Arena, Mick Cronin held his doubts about what type of team would show. Seeing it was the same team that ran to consecutive wins in the Big East tournament brought a sigh of relief.
"The way (the Big East tournament) ended I was really concerned with us coming out flat tonight," Cronin said. "It was a tough comeback after what we went through in New York and the way we lost."
But an opponent unaccustomed to this combination of size and speed, particularly in the vicinity of a full-court press which rattled Weber State into 23 turnovers, UC was able to harness the 119 minutes and 59 seconds of basketball from Madison Square Garden and forget about the final second.
On the national picture, the final between Cincinnati (19-14) and Weber State (20-11) will mean little, it represents another step of progress not only through the eyes of Cronin, but in the numbers.
UC never won a postseason game under Cronin before Wednesday night. It never won 19 games, either. Add in a fourth consecutive season where the team's RPI has improved and it leaves players and coaches feeling like this season continues to be another step in the right direction.
"It's good to see we improved every year since I have been here," Deonta Vaughn said. "Nineteen games, coach Cronin said get at least 20 or 21 wins as coach and player. It means we improved every year and got better as a team."
Nobody knows better than Cronin that this season was not as large a step forward as the team hoped to take, but a step, nonetheless.
"Getting into the NIT is progress," he said. "Obviously, we came so close on so many games. We displayed a kind of team at times our fans thought there was no doubt we were going to be back in the NCAA tournament. Unfortunately, we play in the Big East which can be cruel to young teams at times. We lost too many close games so onward and upward to the NIT."
And the NIT becomes a little more interesting for the fan base clearly not enthralled with the concept of attending the opener. In the second round, UC will host Dayton, who beat Illinois State on Wednesday, 63-42. The date of the game is still unknown.
Whenever it occurs, UC can only hope to repeat a box score filled with uncharacteristic stats for the Bearcats.
The Bearcats dished off 21 assists. The number was last matched by UC against Lipscomb on Dec. 19.
UC's pressure created 11 steals, only one shy of tying the season high in that category.
Perhaps most shocking, UC hit 15 of 16 free throws. Seriously. It almost seems like a joke from the team which entered the game ranked 319th in the country in that category.
They were numbers, believe it or not, the team saw coming after they completed a free-throw shooting drill they hadn't all year in practice. The drill consists of the team needing to make 21 free throws in five minutes while after each free throw, if a player misses, the team has run down the court and back before shooting another.
"That's the first time since I've been here," Vaughn said. "Lot of guys getting up to the line and focusing a lot harder."
http://cnati.com/featured-stories/bearcats-play-on-001546/
In a 76-62 blowout of Weber State, they played like it.
As Darnell Wilks rose above the Wildcats defenders for alley-oop dunks and Deonta Vaughn ascended to the all-time UC record for 3-pointers and assists, the Bearcats overwhelmed the Big Sky regular season champs.
This tournament, so much about motivation with teams jilted and searching for respect, found a Bearcats team driven by disrespect and still stewing from disappointment.
Prior to the tip-off in front of a sparse crowd of 2,410 at Fifth Third Arena, Mick Cronin held his doubts about what type of team would show. Seeing it was the same team that ran to consecutive wins in the Big East tournament brought a sigh of relief.
"The way (the Big East tournament) ended I was really concerned with us coming out flat tonight," Cronin said. "It was a tough comeback after what we went through in New York and the way we lost."
But an opponent unaccustomed to this combination of size and speed, particularly in the vicinity of a full-court press which rattled Weber State into 23 turnovers, UC was able to harness the 119 minutes and 59 seconds of basketball from Madison Square Garden and forget about the final second.
On the national picture, the final between Cincinnati (19-14) and Weber State (20-11) will mean little, it represents another step of progress not only through the eyes of Cronin, but in the numbers.
UC never won a postseason game under Cronin before Wednesday night. It never won 19 games, either. Add in a fourth consecutive season where the team's RPI has improved and it leaves players and coaches feeling like this season continues to be another step in the right direction.
"It's good to see we improved every year since I have been here," Deonta Vaughn said. "Nineteen games, coach Cronin said get at least 20 or 21 wins as coach and player. It means we improved every year and got better as a team."
Nobody knows better than Cronin that this season was not as large a step forward as the team hoped to take, but a step, nonetheless.
"Getting into the NIT is progress," he said. "Obviously, we came so close on so many games. We displayed a kind of team at times our fans thought there was no doubt we were going to be back in the NCAA tournament. Unfortunately, we play in the Big East which can be cruel to young teams at times. We lost too many close games so onward and upward to the NIT."
And the NIT becomes a little more interesting for the fan base clearly not enthralled with the concept of attending the opener. In the second round, UC will host Dayton, who beat Illinois State on Wednesday, 63-42. The date of the game is still unknown.
Whenever it occurs, UC can only hope to repeat a box score filled with uncharacteristic stats for the Bearcats.
The Bearcats dished off 21 assists. The number was last matched by UC against Lipscomb on Dec. 19.
UC's pressure created 11 steals, only one shy of tying the season high in that category.
Perhaps most shocking, UC hit 15 of 16 free throws. Seriously. It almost seems like a joke from the team which entered the game ranked 319th in the country in that category.
They were numbers, believe it or not, the team saw coming after they completed a free-throw shooting drill they hadn't all year in practice. The drill consists of the team needing to make 21 free throws in five minutes while after each free throw, if a player misses, the team has run down the court and back before shooting another.
"That's the first time since I've been here," Vaughn said. "Lot of guys getting up to the line and focusing a lot harder."
http://cnati.com/featured-stories/bearcats-play-on-001546/