FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Cincinnati eliminated SMU from the American Athletic Conference Tournament, beating the Mustangs 74-71. SMU couldn’t get shots to fall, which is. understandable after over a month off due to covid-19 contact tracing. The Mustangs entered the tournament seeded 4th, 1 spot in front of the Bearcats. SMU is now (11-5) overall, and (7-5) in the American. Cincinnati moves to (11-10) overall, including 2 wins over SMU.
The beginning of the game was pretty even, both teams showing up in a big way defensively. With 5 minutes to go in the 1st half, the game was tied at 19. Shortly thereafter, the Bearcats got hot, ending the first half on a 6-0 run and taking a 7-point lead into the break. UC came out of half time even hotter, going on another 6-0 run, building their lead to 13 in a hurry. The lead got as high as 18, before SMU got UC in foul trouble, rallying and cutting the lead to 3 as time expired.
Cincinnati Guard, Jeremiah Davenport was the Bearcats biggest offensive threat, scoring 8 points in the first half and 19 on the day. Statistically, the difference was Cincinnati’s 44% shooting, compared to SMU’s 36%. The Bearcats had 4 players score 10 or more points, while SMU had only 1.
Point guard, Kendric Davis was the Mustangs leading scorer with almost half of their points. He finished with 35 points, nearly doubling his scoring average heading into post-season, which was 17.7 ppg. Davis has been outstanding all season, leading the AAC in assists, making himself an obvious choice for the All-American Conference roster. He’s also received national recognition, earning a spot on the National Player of the Year watch list.
SMU Head Coach, Tim Jankovich said he was proud of his team for their effort and the way they’ve handled adversity this year. Jankovich advocated for his team to have a birth to the NIT, suggesting the committee not hold the Mustangs limited competition against them.
Cincinnati will play in the Semi Final game on Saturday at 2 pm CT in Dickies Arena in Fort Worth against the #1 seed, Wichita State. The American Tournament Championship game will be Sunday afternoon.
