Is it NCAA or bust for Cincinnati Bearcats basketball in 2024-25?

The last NCAA tournament appearance by a Cincinnati Bearcats basketball team came in March 2019 when Mick Cronin’s final UC team was bounced in the opening round by Iowa in Columbus.

Then, 2020 was the COVID-19 year leaving everyone incomplete. Since 2021, Wes Miller has been at the helm of Bearcats hoops. The last two years featured seasons that ended in the NIT quarterfinals.

In 2023-24, UC had a 22-15 record and a 7-11 mark in the treacherous Big 12.

2024-25 on paper looks to be Wes Miller’s best Cincinnati Bearcats basketball team since his arrival in 2021.

“We have the best league,” Miller said. “It’s not a slight toward anybody else’s league. It’s fact. I don’t think it’s an opinion. You look at the numbers. Look at average NET ranking for the last five years. It’s actually not even close.”

In last year’s NCAA NET rankings, the Big 12 had 13 teams among the top 50, counting newcomers and then-SEC-bound Texas and Oklahoma (Houston, Arizona, Iowa State, BYU, Baylor, Kansas, Colorado, Texas Tech, Texas, UC, TCU, Oklahoma and Utah).

UC carries the preseason No. 20 ranking in both the USA TODAY and Associated Press preseason polls. Kansas is ranked atop both tallies with Houston, Iowa State, Baylor and Arizona all making the top 10. Among Big 12 coaches, UC was picked to finish sixth in the league.

2024 game-by-game look for Cincinnati Bearcats basketball

Nov. 4 vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff(No. 354 KenPom.com)

No Cincinnati Bearcats team should lose to a team that sounds like an air freshener. UAPB is No. 354 in KenPom. Some of you may leave early.

Nov. 8 vs. Morehead State(No. 248 KenPom.com)

Former NFL quarterback Phil Simms went there. That should give you some conversation against Ken Pom No. 248 from the Ohio Valley Conference.

Nov. 15 vs. Nicholls(No. 186 KenPom.com)

UC shouldn’t need the week of preparation for this school from Missouri.

Nov. 19 at NKU(No. 157 KenPom.com)

Thank former UC AD Mike Bohn for this return trip to Highland Heights. It was part of the deal allowing UC to…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/ncaa-bust-cincinnati-bearcats-basketball-015945143.html

Author : Cincinnati.com | The Enquirer

Publish date : 2024-11-01 01:59:00

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