3 Players To Watch In Cincinnati’s Second Matchup With Houston

Another weekend. Another heavyweight fight.

It’s Houston, this time, hosting Cincinnati at the Fertitta Center with the home crowd making that place as rowdy and hostile as possible.

Going into this contest, the Cougars are 18-2 and coming off a win over the Horned Frogs, while the Bearcats have momentum after beating the Bears at home to move to 11-10 overall.

The first time these two rosters met, Houston had the upper hand, winning 67-60, which was also the first conference game of the season. Things look different now that there have been over a month's worth of games in the Big 12, and so the players have learned more about each other.

Questions remain about whether Cincinnati has grown since colliding with Houston and if these three players can capitalize and add a desperately needed win in the Quadrant 1 category. Expect these ballers to stick to their game and brew something special.

Baba Miller, Forward

When Baba Miller played the Cougars for the first time, he scored 11 points and shot 57.1 percent, making 4 of 7 field goal attempts. He has to increase those numbers to have a chance of knocking off one of the best of the best in the Big 12.

As the program's leading scorer, he has to post more points because simply not scoring in the double digits isn't going to cut it. Other teammates rely on his ball-handling and expertise to navigate through traffic and find the open man on the court. Finding ways to rebound, winning his matchup, and having numerous assists are the formula for heating up and creating problems for a feisty defense.

From the field, the 6-foot-11 star is averaging 13.8 points per game to go along with his 10.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists. Getting to the line is also part of his game, but he is only a 61.1 percent shooter from there. While he averages over 30 minutes per game, No. 18 will have to be ready to go up and down the court because the Cougars wear teams down.

Day Day Thomas, Guard

One area that Houston has to be disciplined with is drawing fouls. It has been an issue at times this year, and the best free-throw shooter in Cincinnati is going to draw a fair amount of calls, whether anyone agrees with it or not. From the charity stripe, Thomas is 91.1 percent, which has been the reason he has accumulated a ton of success.

As a shooter, he is going 41.3 percent from behind the arc, which is also the best for a Bearcats player this season. No telling how many 3-pointers he’ll toss up there, but it’s going to have a role in the amount of points they register.

The Bishopville, South Carolina, native is also consistent in tallying rebounds and assists, averaging 3.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists. Thomas will turn the ball over as he sits at 1.6, so if any pressure is applied to him by the Cougars’ defense, that could be a turning point in the second matchup.

Jizzle James, Guard

There have been only 10 appearances so far this season, but Jizzle James has made the most of them, averaging 9.9 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists. His field goal percentage sits at 39.8 percent, while he is only 25.7 percent from downtown.

Interestingly, they only got four points from the junior from Orlando, Florida, against Houston, where he went 1 of 7 from the field. He missed all three of his shots from behind the arc, but he had four rebounds and four assists.

Somehow, he is going to need his name called on more and rise to the occasion because it was one of the reasons the Bearcats’ offense struggled. Not every outing do you see James under double digits, but he was against the Cougars. He’s had six games with double digits, with his best performance coming against Baylor, when he had 17 points. Watch out for him to make an impact in this one.