UC coach Wes Miller, Shon Abaev, Moustapha Thiam on Western Carolina W
UC coach Wes Miller, Shon Abaev, Moustapha Thiam on Western Carolina win
Your next chance at catching the new collection of Cincinnati Bearcats on the Fifth Third Arena basketball floor comes Friday, Nov. 7, against the Georgia State Panthers from the Sun Belt Conference.
UC coach Wes Miller played 11 Bearcats in their 31-point win over Western Carolina on Monday, Nov. 7, with all but two playing double-digit minutes.
A trio of newcomers finished with 18 points each as towering transfers Baba Miller (6-foot-11) and Moustapha Thiam (7-2) and true freshman Shon Abaev looked comfortable in their debuts for Miller.
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Miller posted a double-double, adding 10 rebounds and fellow Spaniard Jordi Rodriguez had 10 points in his debut.
“I think our team has the opportunity to become a very, very good team,” coach Miller said. “As we move forward, I think it’s got a chance to be a great team if we’ll embrace the processes. I think we’re skilled, I think we have versatility, I think we can really pass the ball, I think we can score from different places on the floor, and I think we have some guys that can get in the paint and shot create.”
Georgia State Panthers/Cincinnati connection
The non-conference slate continues with Georgia State, a team coached by Jonas Hayes. If that name doesn’t ring a bell, he’s the former assistant of Travis Steele at Xavier who took over the Musketeers in the 2022 postseason and went 4-0 to win the NIT.
Sean Miller then took over Xavier, with Hayes getting the job at Georgia State. He has a losing record overall, but the Panthers’ exhibition season started against the Georgia Bulldogs in Atlanta, where they only lost by four.
Down 40-23 at halftime, Georgia State cut the deficit and only lost 65-61. UC will play Georgia in a Holiday Hoopsgiving game at Atlanta’s State Farm Arena on Dec. 13.
In their opener on Nov. 3, Georgia State lost at Eastern Michigan, 71-49.
Cincinnati Bearcats injuries
Sencire Harris injured his wrist going in for a dunk against Western Carolina, limiting his playing time to just over nine minutes. He finished with six points, a pair of assists and tied for the team lead in steals with Tyler McKinley, both with three in their first games as Bearcats.
Initial X-rays were negative.
Jalen Haynes remains out indefinitely with a lower leg issue, but is walking and with the team, as is guard Lucas Atauri, who is not medically cleared.
3 keys for Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Georgia State Panthers
1. Cincinnati Bearcats should embrace controlled chaos
These Bearcats are quicker than some recent teams and want to push the pace. While some fans may clamor for them to run a play, a common theme with the athletic abilities of today’s “positionless” player is “grab it and go.”
UC outscored Western Carolina 16-0 on fast break points, but that only ties them for No. 74 in the country after one game. After one game, Rick Pitino’s St. John’s team topped all of college basketball with 44.
“I feel like we’re a really good running team,” Abaev said. “That’s what we preach every day in practice. I feel we have a lot of talent across the whole lineup. We love each other on and off the court, that’s what helps us succeed on the court.”
2. Cincinnati Bearcats must win board game
You will see this key umpteen times a season. The Bearcats won the points in paint category 30-22 in the opener, but were actually outrebounded by the Catamounts 37-36. Western Carolina crashed the offensive board 14-7.
In addition to Miller’s 10 caroms, Thiam had five in roughly 24 minutes on the court, while McKinley had five in 15 minutes plus. Halvine Dzellat was most effective with four rebounds in a shade over seven minutes.
Any physical issues will be dealt with via “The Monster Factory” with Senior Associate AD/Sports Performance coach Mike Rehfeldt.
“He treats us like grown men,” Thiam said. “He holds us accountable. It’s a very good thing. I have probably put on 22 pounds or something like that and I think it’s been a really good thing for me.”
Officially, Thiam was listed at 235 last season at UCF and UC has him at 250 pounds.
3. As always, Cincinnati Bearcats must convert at line
Your odd stat of the opener is the Bearcats’ shot over 71% on 2-point shots, which was better than their 67% performance at the free-throw line.
The Bearcats made up for their 10-of-18 first-half percentage of 56% to finish 10-of-12 in the second half. Thiam and Rodriguez got the stripe seven times in the game, with Harris and Miller getting six attempts.
Tip: Friday, Nov. 7, 7 p.m., Fifth Third Arena (12,012)
TV/Radio: ESPN+/700WLW
Series: UC leads 1-0 (Bearcats won 68-53 in first-round NCAA tournament game March 16, 2018, in Nashville)
Georgia State scouting report
Record: 0-1
Coach: Jonas Hayes (fourth season 42-58)
Offense: 49 ppg
Defense: 71 ppg
Projected starting lineup
(Position, height, stats)
Jelani Hamilton (G, 6’5″, 13 ppg)
Isaiah Sherrard (F, 6’7″, 7 ppg)
Joah Chappelle (F, 6’8″, 6 ppg)
Christian Beam (C, 7’1″, 4 ppg)
Malachi Brown (G, 6’1″, 2 ppg)
Cincinnati Bearcats scouting report
Record: 1-0
Coach: Wes Miller (fifth season 83-59, overall 268-194)
Offense: 94 ppg
Defense: 63 ppg
Projected starters
(Position, Height, Weight)
Day Day Thomas (G, 6’1″, 8 ppg)
Kerr Kriisa (G, 6’3″, 6 ppg)
Shon Abaev (G, 6’8″, 18 ppg)
Baba Miller (F, 6’11”, 18 ppg)
Moustapha Thiam (C, 7’2″, 18 ppg)
Players to watch
Jelani Hamilton, who transferred from Iowa State after the 2023-24 season, topped Georgia State in their exhibition with Georgia with 17 points and also led them Nov. 3 in their opening loss at Eastern Michigan with 13 points.
Baba Miller’s double-double debut for UC with 18 points and 10 rebounds stands out. He had five such performances last season at Florida Atlantic. Miller missed just two shots vs. Western Carolina.
Shon Abaev’s 18 points were the most for a UC freshman since Sean Kilpatrick hit for 21 in his 2010 debut against Mount St. Mary’s.
“He’s a freshman playing his first game in college basketball,” coach Miller said of Abaev. “The goal with him isn’t to play the best basketball in November; it’s February and March, it’s Big 12 play. What I know about Shon is he’ll use the things that went well to propel him to keep improving and gain some confidence. He’ll take the things that he knows he’s got to improve on and attack them.”
Rankings
KenPom.com: Cincinnati No. 32, Georgia State No. 322
NCAA NET: Cincinnati No. 50 (last season), Georgia State No. 265
