What we learned from Cincinnati Bearcats basketball home loss vs. West Virginia

Posted by author February 2, 2025 Basketball

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After two Big 12 contests across the country, it was good for the Cincinnati Bearcats basketball team to have a Sunday matinee at Fifth Third Arena.

Then, the game started.

Joseph Yesufu ended a dreadful UC first half by canning a 3-pointer at the buzzer for West Virginia and the Bearcats were down 15 points. Though they played spirited early in the second half, UC could not put anything together Sunday, losing to West Virginia 63-50.

As close as the Bearcats got was 61-50 when Rayvon Griffith hit a 3-pointer to cut it to 11. They would not score again over the final 3:25. Groundhog Day was Sunday and fans relived agony again.

“I’m disgusted with our play,” UC coach Wes Miller said. “If I’m somebody that supports this program I’d be frustrated. I’d be pissed at what I was watching. I am too. I take full responsibility. It’s on me. We’ve got a lot of basketball left. We’ve got to figure out a way to play a style of basketball and a level of basketball that makes people proud about the way we wear the jersey. Right now, we’re not doing that.”

It was the first game of February at home coming off a disappointing January in front of the locals where UC won just one home game. They’re now 1-5 in league games at Fifth Third Arena, 12-9 overall and 2-8 in the Big 12. West Virginia goes to 14-7 (5-5 Big 12). Sunday 11,085 fans took in the event, with many safely in their vehicles at game’s end.

Javon Small, the Big 12’s top scorer, lived up to his billing hitting for his average of 19 points. Joseph Yesufu had 16 and didn’t miss a shot, finishing 6-fo-6 with four treys.

“I love Fifth Third Arena!” Small said. “This is probably my favorite gym to play in. My first college basketball game was at Cincinnati. I just like the gym.”

What UC might not have bargained for was Yesufu’s accuracy. He came in averaging 4.5 points per game and was a 29% shooter from the arc. With 7:35 left, Yesufu’s fourth 3-pointer gave the Mountaineers a 22-point lead and sent a large amount of red-and-black-clad fans to the exits.

Day Day Thomas was the only Bearcat in double figures with 10 points. Simas Lukošius had eight points but was only 1-for-7 from the field. Griffith, in his first extended action, had seven points and missed just one shot.

Measuring Miller madness

The Bearcat boos were again noticeable with 9:38 left in the game. Jonathan Powell, who prepped at Centerville, stole a Dillon Mitchell pass and dunked for a 53-35 WVU lead. Less than two minutes later Yesufu had the Mountaineers up by 22 with his fourth triple.

Miller repeatedly said he understood fans’ aggravation and directed criticism toward himself. However, the Top 25 preseason rankings have him as puzzled as anyone.

“This is my 14th year as a head coach,” Miller said. “I’ve never had a team at this point in the year where I felt the lack of effort collectively that I feel right now. That’s probably new for me.”

He said there’s no stopping in college basketball and is determined to get them in the right mind. He was asked if he was the right guy to do so and firmly answered.

“I have no doubt about that,” Miller said. “I’m extremely, extremely frustrated about the way we’re playing over the last month. I understand how people can feel watching this. I get it. The big picture, zero doubt.”

Cincinnati Bearcats hammered at halftime

When Yesufu drained a 3-pointer at the buzzer, West Virginia’s halftime lead was 40-25 and UC was behind at the break for the fourth straight game.

“It was a huge shot,” Yesufu said of his halftime heave. “This game was a blessing for me in more ways than one. I was happy to provide a spark off the bench.”

At the midway point, Aziz Bandaogo, Jizzle James and Dan Skillings Jr. had not scored and only James had a rebound. At a timeout with 6:51 left in the opening half, Fifth Third Arena was showered in boos. Under Miller, UC is 11-33 when trailing at halftime.

In the second half, James and Skillings Jr. sat to begin play with Josh Reed joining the starters. Some of the biggest ovations of the day came when local product Griffith entered the game in both halves.

Takeaways from Cincinnati Bearcats vs. West Virginia Mountaineers

Cincinnati Bearcats start Day Day Thomas with Jizzle James

After starting all 35 games he appeared in last season, Day Day Thomas returned to the starting lineup for the first time this season Sunday. Thomas doubled up with James at guard. As a result, Skillings Jr. came off the bench for just the second time this season. James didn’t score for the first time this season and was 0-for-8. Skillings had just six points, all in the second half. He now has five rebounds in the last three games.

“We have to find the right combination of guys that want to fight,” Miller said. “That’s not a talent thing or an ability thing. I didn’t take Dan (Skillings) out of the lineup, I put Day Day (Thomas) in. I thought Day Day showed a lot of fight and heart in recent games.”

Griffith’s seven points in a little over 12 minutes might also warrant more time. The former Taft star had the highest plus/minus figure for UC (2) on a mostly negative day.

Wes Miller in jacket, Bob Huggins in attendance

Wes Miller wore a jacket because the game was a Coaches vs. Cancer game. Less than four minutes into the game, it was gone. Miller’s mother is a breast cancer survivor. Former UC and West Virginia coach Bob Huggins attended the game.

West Virginia does 50% on threes

Yesufu and Small had eight of WVU’s nine. Particularly in the first half, the Mountaineer missiles allowed them to build an insurmountable lead. Thomas was the only Bearcat to make more than one, going 2-for-5.

WVU was 9-for-18 from three-point range and UC was 5-for-16. The Bearcats have given up 41 trifectas in their last four games.

“It’s hard to make sense of it, that’s why it’s so frustrating,” Lukošius said of the UC slide. “Mainly it’s us not doing our part in knowing the personnel. There’s things and plays that we’re supposed to know how to guard. We have lapses in concentration and we end up giving up easy threes. That’s been a theme for us in this past month. We’ve taken a dip in how we guard three-point shooters.”

Did UC control home glass?

UC did outrebound WVU and had that advantage for the first time in eight games. The Bearcats had 33 rebounds to WVU’s 31. Dillon Mitchell led with 10. However, their turnovers and shooting woes outweighed the margin on the glass.

West Virginia came into the game averaging nearly three fewer rebounds per game than their opponent.

“I thought if we won the rebounding battle that would be a good sign for us to win the game,” Miller said. “There were too many other things where that didn’t matter as it should. Loose balls off the rim in the first half were significantly frustrating because they resulted in easy baskets.”

UC had 14 turnovers to 13 for West Virginia with the Mountaineers getting 20 points off of the Bearcats’ sloppiness.

How Cincinnati Bearcats fared vs. WVU’s Javon Small

West Virginia’s Small came into the game as the Big 12’s top scorer at 19.1 points per game. The Mountaineers are his third team as he beat UC last year playing for Oklahoma State, then lost to them at his first stop in East Carolina.

Small carved UC up in the first half, going 5-for-9, 3-for-5 on treys for 14 points. He finished as the game’s top scorer with 19 and also dished out nine assists.

Next up on Big 12 menu

The Bearcats hit the road again for a Wednesday night, 7 p.m. tip in Orlando with UCF on CBS Sports Network. The Knights have been tough at Addition Arena with just two losses. Kansas pounded them by 51, but Houston only beat them by a point. UCF lost at home to BYU Saturday night, 81-75.