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Tri-State Morning Tip-Off
A quick and easy daily recap of the night in area CBB and a look ahead to tonight's action.
Tonight
UC (6-0) at Villanova (4-4), Big 12/BIG EAST Battle, 6:30, 700 WLW. 1st meeting since 2013. UC is second nationally in shooting (53.6). Cincinnati has allowed 60 or fewer points in all six games, the program’s longest streak since eight in 2017-18. NKU is the only team to shoot above 36 percent on the Bearcats, whose 34.6 percent clip for the season ranks third in the country. Villanova forward Eric Dixon ranks second in the nation in scoring at 25.1 points per game.
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UK (6-0) at Clemson (7-1), SEC/ACC Challenge, 9:30, ESPN 1530.
1st true road test for the Cats. UK plays the 4th fastest pace in the country and lead the country with 23 fast break points per game. Clemson plays at one of the slowest paces, ranked 292nd. Tigers 6'8 forward Ian Schieffelin is the only player in the country averaging at least 12.5 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. Former UC big man Viktor Lakhin is averaging 11.1 points and 5.4 rebounds for the Tigers. UK shot a school record 80.5% from 2-point range vs. Georgia State, bettering 78.1% vs. Lamar in 1986. UK's 61.9% shooting from inside of the arc ranks 2nd in Division I this season.
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NKU (2-5) at Akron (4-2), 7pm, Fox Sports 1360
The Norse are 0-3 in road games. Sam Vinson has fourth straight game with 15+ points. He sits just three points away from 1,000 career points. Zips are coached by John Groce, brother of Miami coach Travis Steele. The Zips have made at least one 3-pointer in 776 consecutive games (2000-01 season).
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Dayton (6-2) hosting Western Michigan (3-4)
The Flyers are back from the Maui Invitational where they played three consecutive Top 12 for the first time in 74 years, but it was the first time in three consecutive days. A different Flyer led the team in scoring in each game. UD lost by a total of seven points to 12th-ranked North Carolina and fifth-ranked Iowa State, then beat UConn.
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Louisville (5-2) welcomes Ole Miss (6-1), SEC/ACC Challenge.
Cards 6-foot 10-inch senior Kasean Pryor (12.0 points/6.1 rebounds per game) will miss the rest of the season after tearing his ACL in the last game vs. Oklahoma in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
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Indiana (5-2) home to Sam Houston (4-4)
IU center Oumar Ballo ranks Top 20 among active NCAA Division I players in career wins (2nd; 117), career double doubles (T-6th; 34), career rebounds (8th; 926), and career blocked shots (T-18th; 156). Hoosiers get 6 of next 7 at home. The Bearkats, with a K, shoot .403 from beyond the arc.
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Sean Miller Show, 7pm, 55 KRC
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Last night
Miami 73 Air Force 60
Peter Suder scored a career-high 42 points (17-of-21 FG), the most from a RedHawk since Wally Szczerbiak scored 43 in 1999. Suder tied for the fourth-highest points scored against Air Force (2-6) in their program history behind only Adrian Dantley (49), Tom Hawkins (43) and Elvin Hayes (43). The Redhawks (5-2) shot 56.6% from the field.
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Awards
Big East Honor Roll
Zach Freemantle, Xavier. Averaged 15.7 points, 8.7 boards and 1.7 steals in a 2-1 week. Made the All-Tournament Team at the Ft. Myers Tip-Off.
Atlantic 10 Player of the Week
Enoch Cheeks, Dayton. Against three Top 12 teams at the Maui Invitational, averaging 15.7 points and 7.0 rebounds while shooting .548 (17-31) FG, and .474 3-pt, FG. He played 37 minutes, scoring 20 points, and grabbing seven rebounds in a win over second-ranked UConn.
ACC Player of the Week
Chucky Hepburn, Louisville. Averaged 20 points per game over the three contests, shooting 62.5% from the field, adding 16 assists.
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The 1st NET Rankings are out. The NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) used by the selection committee.
1. Tennessee
8. Kentucky
11. Cincinnati
21. Purdue
30. Louisville
40. Dayton
60. Indiana
103. Xavier
110. Wright State
146. Miami
176. Ohio
286. NKU