Positive thinking is an important asset for a team and its fans. For the Cincinnati Bearcats and their fans, there is still hope. But the reality is, the Cincinnati Bearcats need to start stacking wins if they want any shot at earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
There are five games remaining in the regular season. Three of them are on the road against good teams. Two of them are at home against not-so-good teams. There are still opportunities to earn resume-building wins, including Saturday afternoon at TCU. Cincinnati has already beaten TCU this season, an 81-77 overtime win at Fifth Third Arena back on January 16th. The Bearcats also have a series sweep over the only team they have played twice this regular season, Central Florida. And if you read my column from Wednesday night’s game on where I think this Bearcats team stands, I talked about how there is still hope given the latest bracketology projections from CBS and FOX. And ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s Friday morning update still has the Bearcats on the bubble in the “Next Four Out.” Combine that with what I said was genuine positivity from Wes Miller, and I’m optimistic going into Saturday afternoon’s game at TCU. With that, here are my players to watch, notes from the first matchup with TCU and keys to Saturday afternoon’s game at the Horned Frogs.
1. #2 Emanuel Miller, 6’7″, 215 lbs., F, Scarborough, Ontario, Texas A&M Transfer
16.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 48.7 FG%, 39% 3-PT FG, 80.2 FT%, 70 ast.-38 TO, 11 blk, 28 stl, 32.3 mpg
Jan. 16 @ Cincinnati: 15 pts, 3 rebs, 5-14 FG (2-5 3-PT FG), 3-4 FT, 5 ast.-2 TO, stl, 39 mins
The sixth-leading scorer in the Big 12, Miller has scored in double figures in all 13 of TCU’s Big 12 games. That includes two 21-point outings and five 15+-point games since TCU lost to Cincinnati in mid-January. He’s also a force on the glass, with games of 11 and 12 rebounds and seven overall with five or more rebounds in TCU’s nine games since losing to the Bearcats.
2. #0 Micah Peavy, 6’8″, 215 lbs., Sr., G, Cibolo, Texas, Texas Tech Transfer
11.5 ppg, 5 rpg, 48% FG, 30.8 3-PT FG%, 59.2 FT%, 75 ast.-42 TO, 8 blk, 34 stl, 29.3 mpg
Jan. 16 @ Cincinnati: 11 pts, 5 rebs, 4-9 FG (1-1 3-PT FG), 2-4 FT, 2 ast.-1 TO, 2 stl, 35 mins
Peavy is a solid second-leading scorer on TCU who has performed well in the nine games since the 81-77 overtime loss at Cincinnati. He has four games scoring over 15 points including a 26-point outing at Kansas State last Saturday. Peavy also has seven games with five or more rebounds in the nine-game stretch.
3. #4 Jameer Nelson Jr., 6’2″, 205 lbs., Sr., G, Haverford, Pennsylvania, Delaware Transfer
10.9 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 43.1 FG%, 27.8 3-PT FG%, 70.1 FT%, 80 ast.-58 TO, 12 blk, 55 stl, 24.7 mpg
Jan. 16 @ Cincinnati: 13 pts, 5 rebs, 6-15 FG (1-5 3-PT FG), 0-2 FT, 4 ast.-4 TO, 26 mins
Nelson has had an up-and-down Big 12 season, at least in scoring. He’s had seven games with 10+ points but six games in the single digits. He has started TCU’s previous three games and has 14 points in two of them. But where Cincinnati can have success against Nelson is pressuring him with the ball, considering he has 23 turnovers to just 22 assists in his last nine games.
