Of the seven losses the University of Cincinnati basketball team has absorbed this year, the non-conference loss at home to Presbyterian ranks as the most embarrassing, but the Jan. 7 loss to St. John?s at Fifth Third Arena is a close second and clearly has been the most difficult Big East defeat for the Bearcats to get over.
The mere mention of that St. John?s game still makes the players cringe with regret.
?We felt like we gave the game away,? said sophomore forward Justin Jackson.
The Bearcats, who shot a season-low 26.3 percent and made just seven of 32 3-point shots against the Red Storm, recovered from a 10-point deficit with 4:05 remaining and tied the score at 55-55 on Jeremiah Davis? 3-point shot from the corner, only to watch St. John?s Moe Harkless tip in D?Angelo Harrison?s errant baseline floater just before the final horn sounded, saddling UC with a humbling 57-55 loss.
?We felt as if that could have been a game that could have been won easily,? said sophomore guard Sean Kilpatrick. ?Afterwards, we were like, what just happened? We don?t want to have that feeling again.?
UC (16-7 overall, 6-4 in the Big East) will attempt to turn the tables on the Red Storm (10-13, 4-7) at 7 Wednesday (ESPNU) at New York?s Madison Square Garden.
?I?m hungry for them,? Jackson said. ?I want them.?
The Red Storm has started five freshmen in its last four games, going 2-2 in those games, including a 16-point win at home against West Virginia. St. John?s boasts two of the top freshmen in the league, if not the country, in Harrison, the leading freshman scorer in the Big East at 16.7 points per game, and Harkless, who?s not far behind at 16.2. DeAngelo has averaged 18.7 points in conference games, which puts him fourth in the league.
UC coach Mick Cronin is pleased to hear that his players are highly motivated to win this game, but he knows that hunger for revenge alone won?t get the job done. For the Bearcats to win, they have to elevate their level of offensive execution against St. John?s zone defense.
Concerned that the Bearcats, who rank 15th in the 16-team league in field goal percentage and free throw percentage, are taking too many difficult shots, Cronin is looking for better play from his guards, especially senior Dion Dixon.
?He has 30 less defensive rebounds than Cashmere Wright on the season and he?s three inches taller and 20 pounds stronger,? Cronin said. ?That?s what I?m worried about. Dion Dixon has got to be a better defensive rebounder and he?s got to shoot a higher percentage from the field. He?s shooting 35 percent from the field in Big East play.?
Cronin also hopes to get more production from his bench.
?Those guys have got to give us minutes,? Cronin said. ?I?ve got to get Jermaine Sanders in the game in the first half. It?s tough when you don?t get him in and then you try to throw him in there in the second half. I think for us to be at our best we have to be a 10-man team. Our starting five isn?t overwhelming enough to just dominate every game.?
Kilpatrick, who grew up in nearby White Plains, expects a large contingent of family and friends at the Garden tonight. He doesn?t want to have to greet them after the game with another deflating loss to the Red Storm on his mind.
?We know that they?re young and that they play well against competition when it?s brought to them,? Kilpatrick said. ?We?ve got to go in there not taking them lightly. I think that?s what we did the first time.?
The mere mention of that St. John?s game still makes the players cringe with regret.
?We felt like we gave the game away,? said sophomore forward Justin Jackson.
The Bearcats, who shot a season-low 26.3 percent and made just seven of 32 3-point shots against the Red Storm, recovered from a 10-point deficit with 4:05 remaining and tied the score at 55-55 on Jeremiah Davis? 3-point shot from the corner, only to watch St. John?s Moe Harkless tip in D?Angelo Harrison?s errant baseline floater just before the final horn sounded, saddling UC with a humbling 57-55 loss.
?We felt as if that could have been a game that could have been won easily,? said sophomore guard Sean Kilpatrick. ?Afterwards, we were like, what just happened? We don?t want to have that feeling again.?
UC (16-7 overall, 6-4 in the Big East) will attempt to turn the tables on the Red Storm (10-13, 4-7) at 7 Wednesday (ESPNU) at New York?s Madison Square Garden.
?I?m hungry for them,? Jackson said. ?I want them.?
The Red Storm has started five freshmen in its last four games, going 2-2 in those games, including a 16-point win at home against West Virginia. St. John?s boasts two of the top freshmen in the league, if not the country, in Harrison, the leading freshman scorer in the Big East at 16.7 points per game, and Harkless, who?s not far behind at 16.2. DeAngelo has averaged 18.7 points in conference games, which puts him fourth in the league.
UC coach Mick Cronin is pleased to hear that his players are highly motivated to win this game, but he knows that hunger for revenge alone won?t get the job done. For the Bearcats to win, they have to elevate their level of offensive execution against St. John?s zone defense.
Concerned that the Bearcats, who rank 15th in the 16-team league in field goal percentage and free throw percentage, are taking too many difficult shots, Cronin is looking for better play from his guards, especially senior Dion Dixon.
?He has 30 less defensive rebounds than Cashmere Wright on the season and he?s three inches taller and 20 pounds stronger,? Cronin said. ?That?s what I?m worried about. Dion Dixon has got to be a better defensive rebounder and he?s got to shoot a higher percentage from the field. He?s shooting 35 percent from the field in Big East play.?
Cronin also hopes to get more production from his bench.
?Those guys have got to give us minutes,? Cronin said. ?I?ve got to get Jermaine Sanders in the game in the first half. It?s tough when you don?t get him in and then you try to throw him in there in the second half. I think for us to be at our best we have to be a 10-man team. Our starting five isn?t overwhelming enough to just dominate every game.?
Kilpatrick, who grew up in nearby White Plains, expects a large contingent of family and friends at the Garden tonight. He doesn?t want to have to greet them after the game with another deflating loss to the Red Storm on his mind.
?We know that they?re young and that they play well against competition when it?s brought to them,? Kilpatrick said. ?We?ve got to go in there not taking them lightly. I think that?s what we did the first time.?
