UC Bearcats stomped by Notre Dame, 62-41
Feb. 24, 2013 5:58 PM


Bearcats head coach Mick Cronin yells to his players during the second half of UC's 62-41 loss at Notre Dame on Sunday. Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

Written by
Bill Koch

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The frustration is beginning to bubble to the surface.

After the University of Cincinnati Bearcats suffered their first blowout loss of the season Sunday, falling to No. 25 Notre Dame, 62-41, junior guard Sean Kilpatrick was brutally honest about the ugly turn this once-promising season has taken.

“There’s a lot of things that have got to be changed quick because this season is going down the drain and we’re letting it,” Kilpatrick said.

UC coach Mick Cronin proudly pointed out Saturday that the Bearcats had a realistic chance to win every game they had lost this season, but that came to an end when they were overwhelmed by the Fighting Irish before 9,149 fans at Purcell Pavilion.

UC (19-9, 7-8 in the Big East) shot 31.5 percent from the field, was out-rebounded, 43-27, and produced its lowest point total of the season by nine points. The Bearcats have lost three straight for the first time since last January and have dropped five of their last six.

“We got beat real bad,” said senior guard JaQuon Parker, who led UC with 12 points. “It’s tough on us after coming from the Sweet 16 last year and starting to build a winning culture around our school, but we’ve still got time to turn it around.”

A lack of production from the front line continues to shackle UC’s perimeter-oriented offense. With the big men failing to score enough to make opposing defenses pay attention to them, guards Cashmere Wright and Kilpatrick have found shots increasingly difficult to come by.

UC’s top two scorers, who entered the game averaging a combined 31 points, scored six between them, all by Kilpatrick, who was 3-for-13 from the field and 0-for-3 from 3-point range. Wright attempted only two shots the entire game, one of which was an air ball early in the second half, and was shut out for the first time since Feb. 29 of last year vs. Marquette.

“They were playing Cash and me,” Kilpatrick said of the Notre Dame defense. “Everyone else they were just letting them run free. That’s been happening all year and it’s going to continue to happen. More people on this team have got to be more assertive. Two people just can’t win the game for you.

“That’s something that’s hurting us big time due to the fact they’re going to have their best defenders out on me and Cash the whole game. Sometimes they even double-team me and Cash. That’s when other people have got to step up. I don’t blame them. If I wanted to win, I would do the exact same thing.”

UC’s three centers – David Nyarsuk, Cheikh Mbodj and Kelvin Gaines - combined for four points and five rebounds.

“Our (centers) have got to try harder,” Cronin said. “They had zero deflections between the three of them. We got out-rebounded by 16. That’s inexcusable. We were playing small a lot because we were getting no production from our (centers).”

Notre Dame (22-6, 10-5) was led by Jerian Grant, who scored 13 points. He was one of four double-figure scorers for the Irish, who have won 51 of their last 54 games at home.

“We did a great job guarding the perimeter,” said Notre Dame coach Mike Brey. “They could never really get going offensively. They are in a tough situation right now because Cashmere Wright is not completely healthy.”

UC fell behind early and never caught up. The Bearcats trailed by 14 at the half, rallied briefly to get within nine with 10:26 to play, but then saw the Irish go on a 9-2 run to put the game away.

“We’ve played 28 games and we had 27 games where we gave everything we had and battled and had our chances to win,” Cronin said. “We were probably due for a night where we didn’t play well. You have to play great to win here. We played bad so you’ve got no chance. Our guys care. It’s not a bad attitude. It’s just a lack of production.”

The Bearcats, who once seemed a lock for the NCAA Tournament and in line for a high seed, now risk getting left out of the tournament if they don’t right the ship in their last three regular-season games plus the Big East tournament. They entered play Sunday at No. 48 in the RPI and falling fast.

“I’ve been concerned about it all year,” Cronin said. “Ever since Cashmere Wright got hurt, I’ve been concerned about it. Nothing’s a sure thing.”

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20130...eakingnews

For the young man in Missouri:

Written by
Bill Koch

Quote:9,149 fans at Purcell Pavilion.

(02-24-2013 07:58 PM)ctipton Wrote:  For the young man in Missouri:

Written by
Bill Koch

Quote:9,149 fans at Purcell Pavilion.

LOL thx Ctip hahahaha