Three Man Weave: UC's AAC Tenure Ends With 69-48 Loss To Houston

Cincinnati couldn't get over the hump against Houston this season.

Author:
Russ Heltman
Mar 11, 2023 5:32 PM EST

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Cincinnati Bearcats

Houston Cougars

CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Bearcats ended its time playing AAC basketball on Saturday in a 69-48 loss to Houston.

Houston's patented top-tier defense stifled the Bearcats' pace and flow offense to lead a rough day for UC. Landers Nolley II (14 points, 3-of-13 FGs) led the scoring tally, but no player turned in an efficient performance long enough to make a difference.

Cincinnati has now lost nine straight games to Houston. The Cougars aren't going anywhere as one of the main thorns of the Wes Miller era.

The nation's top team joins UC in America's best basketball conference next year. These battles have felt close at moments, but even without Marcus Sasser (quadriceps) for most of the game—Houston's depth prevailed.

Here's the Three Man Weave On Saturday's AAC semifinal loss.

Classic Defense

The Bearcats' free-flowing offense from Friday dried up immediately against the nation's fourth-best defense (UC 25.5% from the field, worst on the season by 8%). Cincinnati's backcourt could not get any sets to stick as the mix of zone and man sent things into haywire mode.

Save for one spell early in the second half, David DeJulius (7 points, 1-of-10 FGs) mostly no-showed in the conference tournament. His size issues really show up against a physical, long defense like Houston.

The graduate guard couldn't get anything to fall and looked tired on his jump shots throughout the game. UC settled for a lot of tough threes (6-of-28 from deep) and did not take advantage of the game's physical advantages.

The team shot 16-of-28 from the free throw line and short-rimmed plenty of those chances.

Not much went right for the Bearcats on Saturday.

Sasser Goes Down

Sasser is the heart and soul of the Cougars, but they were able to cruise without him against Cincinnati. He went down awkwardly at the top of the key during the first half and did not return. Jamal Shead (16 points, 9 assists) and J'Whan Roberts (16 points, 8 rebounds) picked up the slack well with timely sets by Shead.

Meanwhile, Roberts set the tone early with 6 points in the first three minutes via great energy on the glass. The AAC's Most Improved Player did not let Houston's iffy performance against East Carolina become a storyline again.

Houston looks dead set on a mission to play for a national championship in its backyard. Four players posted a defensive rating below 86 in the Cougars rotation during a stellar team defensive performance.

NIT Time?

UC lost to Houston but still helped the season resume in a daunting tournament. The 84-54 win over Temple actually moved Cincinnati up firmly into home-court territory for the NIT.

According to Dratings.com, DeJulius & Co. are projected as a three-seed that would host long-time rival St. Louis. UC's played SLU the fourth-most of any opponent in team history, holding a 59-19 record against the Billikens.

The two programs have not faced off since 2008.

The performance against Houston produced an opposite feeling for the fanbase from Friday, but the improvement in the program showed this season. It's next step time as the hunt for more talent starts in a few weeks with the Big 12 looming.

That should have to wait though.

Cincinnati has the offensive ceiling to compete for an NIT title, and it seems very likely the season continues—if the staff wants to go for that prize. Why not go on one more ride (at least) inside Fifth Third Arena this season?

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