Winners and Losers from Cincinnati's 67-59 loss to No. 1 Houston

Cincinnati's hopes for an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament likely ended on Tuesday.

Author:
Neil Meyer
Updated:
Feb 28, 2024 6:43 PM EST

In this story:

CINCINNATI — Tuesday night, Wes Miller and the Cincinnati Bearcats saw their chances of an at-large bid decrease yet again following a 67-59 loss to No.1 Houston.

Winners

Cincinnati forward Viktor Lakhin had his best performance of conference play following his 11-point, nine-rebound outing. I thought this could spark Lakhin's confidence, something the Russian forward has desperately been searching for over the last two weeks.

Lakhin's 21 minutes of play on Tuesday night was the most the redshirt junior has played since the team's loss to Kansas on January 22nd, where the Bearcats fell to the Jayhawks 74-69. Lakhin's presence in the paint allowed Cincinnati to space the floor, resulting in many great looks at the rim. Although, they weren't able to convert on many of those looks.

Cincinnati got the production they needed in the front court from their big men, but it all started with the play of Lakhin. Cincinnati won the rebounding battle 41-34, and it all started with the consistent play of Lakhin that allowed the Bearcats to set the tone early in this contest.

I thought Aziz Bandaogo complemented Lakhin very well in the front court, alongside Jamille Reynolds. Cincinnati's physicality gave the Cougars some difficulties as they held Houston's leading scorer Jamal Shead to just nine points on 2-11 shooting. Cincinnati made it difficult for the veteran point guard to get anything going on the offensive side of the ball, but Shead was able to affect the game in other ways, finishing with a game-high 11 assists.

Losers

Cincinnati forward John Newman III struggled on Tuesday, finishing with just three points on 1-of-6 shooting. Newman has been Cincinnati's best on-ball defender all season long but has not been the same caliber player since sustaining the rib injury earlier in conference play.

The Cougars backcourt was able to exploit Newman on Tuesday night, which is something opposing teams have had struggles with all season long. However, LJ Cryer made it difficult for Newman to keep up as the senior guard finished with a game-high 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting.

That was a matchup many fans were looking at heading into this contest, as Newman took Cryer out of the equation in the team's first matchup. While the rest of the Cougars team struggled on Tuesday, Cryer had one of his best performances of the season, and it came when they needed it the most.

Newman's such a vital piece for this Bearcats team, and they desperately need someone to step up on the offensive side of the ball, something Newman has done at times this season.

Cincinnati has lacked scoring over the last few games, but could Newman be that spark that Wes Miller and Cincinnati need over the next three games? We'll find out on Saturday in the team's matchup vs Kansas State.

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