With their first road win under their belt, the Cincinnati Bearcats high-flying men’s basketball team will hit the air for the first time when they charter to Atlanta for a Saturday afternoon tip with Georgia Tech.
Wes Miller’s team is ranked No. 18 in the AP and No. 16 in the USA Today Coaches poll and will get their toughest test mathematically against the Yellowjackets. In Wednesday’s KenPom.com rankings, UC was 10th of 364 Division I teams with Georgia Tech at No. 104.
UC coach Miller was both pleased and dismayed by Tuesday’s 76-60 win at Northern Kentucky University (No. 194 KenPom).
“I think that’ll be good for our learning, but it made it a type of game that we had to figure some things out,” Miller said. “That was good for us in a way we haven’t been tested the first three games.”
Up by only four points at halftime, the Bearcats lit the nets at 74% in the second half to pull away and win by 16 at NKU’s Truist Arena 76-60. The Bearcats never trailed in the game, but the Norse made them work. NKU also outrebounded the Bearcats 36-27.
3 keys for Cincinnati Bearcats basketball to beat Georgia Tech
1. Win the rebounding battle
Crash the glass. Hit the boards. UC was outrebounded for the first time this season at NKU with the Norse pulling down 36 to 27 for the Bearcats. In no uncertain terms, UC coach Miller was aggravated by using the terms “stinks” and “atrocious” to describe his team’s efforts on the backboards.
“We will be a good rebounding team, I promise you that,” Miller said. “I think it (Tuesday) was atrocious. I’m pissed about it. We will address that.”
2. Sling the ball to Simas (Lukošius)
Wednesday, 6-foot-8 guard/forward Simas Lukošius was the country’s No. 2 three-point shooter, hitting nearly 70%. He trails only Kentucky’s Koby Brea (former Dayton Flyer) who was lights out at 79%. If the rims are friendly at McCarnish Pavilion it would be in UC’s best interest to feed the long-range Lithuanian.
“What I’m not surprised about is I see it every day in practice,” Miller said. “It’s not some streak or stretch, he’ll be like this all year.”
Lukošius is also bullish on his abilities.
“The goal is for it not to stop,” he said. “I think a big emphasis for me is to stay consistent and there’s no reason I can’t shoot like this every night. This is how I shoot. It can’t be a once-in-every-three-games thing.”
3. Know that last season’s 35-point victory doesn’t matter
In the first game Aziz Bandaogo was eligible last season, UC jumped out to a 40-32 halftime lead on Georgia Tech, then ran away with the game in the second half to prevail 89-54. It was their most convincing non-conference win of the season.
Before they strain a muscle back-patting, the Yellowjackets finished just 14-18 last season, albeit in the ACC. No one that started that night for the Bearcats is starting now and Georgia Tech has added some new starters.
The Yellowjackets have yet to play anywhere but home with their two losses coming to North Florida and the Georgia Bulldogs.
Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Georgia Tech Yellowjackets
Tip: Saturday 2 p.m. at McCarnish Pavilion (8,600)
TV/Radio: ACCNX (available on ESPN app)/700WLW
Series: UC leads 8-3
Georgia Tech Yellowjackets scouting report
Record: 2-2
Coach: Damon Stoudamire (second season, 16-20)
Offense: 82 ppg
Defense: 76.5 ppg
Projected starting lineup
(Position, Height, Stats)
Baye Ndongo (F, 6’9″, 15.8 ppg)
Javian McCollum (G, 6’2″, 14.8 ppg)
Kowacie Reeves Jr. (G. 6’2″, 12.3 ppg)
Naithan George (G, 6’3″, 8.5 ppg)
Doryan Onwuchekwa (F, 6’11”, 3.8 ppg)
Cincinnati Bearcats scouting report
(Position, Height, Stats)
Dillon Mitchell (F, 6’8″, 12 ppg)
Aziz Bandaogo (C, 7′, 8.8 ppg)
Simas Lukošius (G-F, 6’8″, 17.8 ppg)
Jizzle James (G, 6’3″, 14 ppg)
Connor Hickman (G, 6’3″, 7.3 ppg)
Players to watch
Georgia Tech picked up guard Javian McCollum from Oklahoma in the portal this offseason. He’s averaging close to 15 points this season and was Big 12 Honorable Mention last season for the Sooners while averaging 13.3 points per game. He played at Siena the previous two seasons, where he scored at a 15.9 clip his sophomore season.
For UC, Simas Lukošius’s accuracy from the outside is noteworthy. Imagine going 6-for-9 from the arc, and your shooting percentage actually goes down. For perspective, his 73% from the field and 70% from the perimeter are above UC’s total free-throw shooting numbers of 62%.
Rankings
NCAA NET: UC No. 37 last year, Georgia Tech No. 127
KenPom.com: UC No. 10, Georgia Tech No. 104
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Scouting report for Cincinnati Bearcats basketball at Georgia Tech
