No. 20 Cincinnati will give Morehead State a challenging road trip Friday night.
The Bearcats (1-0) opened their season Monday with a 109-54 home win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Even though his team came away with the win after shooting 58.3 percent from the field, 50 percent from three-point range and a 56-28 edge in points in the paint, Bearcats coach Wes Miller wants Cincinnati’s effort and intensity to remain high.
“I love coaching here because when you get a dunk, the fans love it,” Miller said. “But if you dive down with three or four guys, they go bananas.”
With 12 points and 10 assists, Jizzle James notched his first career double-double against Arkansas Pine-Bluff. Miller said he has good guarding qualities. James also put up a stat sheet with seven rebounds.
“Jizzle James is everything you want in a player,” Miller said. “His work ethic; he’s bought in and he’s coachable. He’s honest as can be. He can’t be dishonest. I said, ‘We’ve got to catch some guys and stop settling.’ He said, ‘I know the coach, I was just happy.’
Simas Lukosius led six Cincinnati players in double-digit scoring with 20 points. Dan Skillings Jr. had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
Simas has been coming down (on offense),” Miller said. “It’s his second year in the program and he’s very comfortable with our offense. You can see the progress.”
Even though the Bearcats hold a 48-25 edge, Miller wants more from Cincinnati when it comes to defensive rebounding. He said the Bearcats will use the time between games to “clean up communications and work on rehab.”
“I didn’t like that Arkansas-Pine Bluff got (eight) offensive rebounds in our gym,” Miller said. “We’re very athletic, big and deep and I expected us to be better on the backboards. I didn’t like some of our defensive communication. But I think our guys responded and put some things together.”
The Eagles (1-1) lost 93-45 to Louisville on Monday in Kentucky. They were outscored 41-14 in the first half. But Morehead State bounced back to win its 27th straight home opener on Wednesday with an 89-48 victory over Boyce College.
Tyler Brelsford led the Eagles with 16 points, Kenny White Jr. he had 15 and Kade Ruegsegger had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Jalen Breazeale, with 10 points, was Morehead State’s fourth player to score in double figures.
Morehead State improved to 63-0 against non-Division I opponents since 1992. Boyce is a member of the National Christian College Athletic Association. It was the first win at Morehead State for new coach Jonathan Mattox, who wants the Eagles to do a better job of finishing in the paint and at the rim.
“The thing we were most excited about was the end,” said Mattox. “We saw it on Monday in Louisville, and we thank them for playing well. But I think we’re going in well. We have to go in with strength and not slow down. We have to go in, come out with two feet, go into the game with our chest and finish with contact.”
–Field Level Media
Source link
