The Bearcats were picked to finish fourth in the conference, which should lead to a NCAA tournament bid, but with their talent they have the potential to finish higher in my opinion.
Senior guard Keith Williams was tabbed to the Preseason First Team All-American Athletic Conference.
Senior center Chris Vogt was tabbed to the Preseason Second Team All-American Athletic Conference.
Per GoBearcats:
American Athletic Conference coaches picked the University of Cincinnati men’s basketball team to finish fourth while honoring seniors Keith Williams and Chris Vogt as the league’s preseason poll and awards were announced Wednesday.
Williams earned first team all-conference recognition while Vogt received second team all-league selection.
Williams becomes the sixth Bearcat to earn AAC preseason first team all-conference honors since the league formed prior to 2013-14, joining Sean Kilpatrick (2014), Octavius Ellis (2016), Troy Caupain (2017), Gary Clark (2017) and Jarron Cumberland (2019, 2020).
Williams enjoyed his best season as a Bearcat a year ago, starting 29 of UC’s 30 games while averaging 12.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists. He ranked among league leaders during AAC play in free throw percentage (fourth at .833), field goal percentage (11th at .437), blocks (tied for 13th at 0.8), steals (15th at 1.3) and points (tied for 15th at 12.7).
Vogt posted his highest numbers at the collegiate level in 2019-20, his first in a Bearcats uniform. He averaged 11.0 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and shot 64.8 percent from the field. His shooting percentage would have ranked fourth in the nation and first in school history had he averaged 5.0 or more field goals per game. He finished the season averaging 4.53 field goals.
For the season, Vogt ranked among AAC leaders in field goal percentage (first at .648), blocks (fifth at 1.6), offensive rebounds (seventh at 2.6), rebounds (16th at 5.9) and points (tied for 25th at 11.0).
BEARCATS PICKED TO FINISH FOURTH IN AAC
League coaches predicted a fourth-place finish for Cincinnati, who was allotted 77 points. Houston was picked as the league favorite, garnering 99 points, followed by Memphis (90 points) and SMU (80 points). Houston received nine first-place votes while Memphis gathered the other two.
The predicted order of finish for the remaining AAC teams follows: USF (61 points), Tulsa (50), Wichita State (44), UCF (37), East Carolina (34), Temple (18) and Tulane (15).
2020-21 AAC PRESEASON POLL & AWARDS
Coaches Preseason Poll
Finish – Team (First-Place Votes) – Points
1 – Houston (9) – 99
2 – Memphis (2) – 90
3 – SMU – 80
4 – Cincinnati 77
5 – USF – 61
6 – Tulsa – 50
7 – Wichita State – 44
8 – UCF – 37
9 – East Carolina – 34
10 – Temple – 18
11 – Tulane – 15
Preseason Player of the Year
Caleb Mills, Houston
Preseason Rookie of the Year
Moussa Cisse, Memphis
Preseason First Team
Keith Williams, Cincinnati
Jayden Gardner, East Carolina*Caleb Mills, Houston*Kendric Davis, SMUBrandon Rachal, Tulsa
Preseason Second Team
Chris Vogt, Cincinnati
D.J. Jeffries, Memphis
Landers Nolley II, Memphis
Alexis Yetna, USF
Tyson Jolly, SMU
* unanimous selection
