CINCINNATI, Ohio – SMU has known since September that March 6 in Cincinnati would be its final game of the season. Heading into the game, it knew it needed to win to secure its second straight conference title.
But the Mustangs (25-5, 13-5 American) could not get the win, losing to Cincinnati (22-9, 12-6 AAC), 61-54. The Bearcats shot only 29.5 percent from the floor, but made 24 of 30 free throw attempts. SMU, which had 17 turnovers, has lost three straight games at Fifth Third Arena, the only place it has not won in AAC play. SMU can still clinch a share of the conference title if Temple loses at last-place Tulane later Sunday afternoon.
Defense dominated most of the game, especially early. SMU held an early 16-13 lead, but Cincinnati responded with an 8-0 run to take a 21-16 lead with 5:34 left in the first half. The Bearcats used seven made free throws in the final 3:36 minutes, coupled with four SMU turnovers in that span to take a 34-27 halftime lead.
“We got hurt on the boards, got hurt turning the ball over,” SMU head coach Larry Brown said. “We couldn’t keep them off the line, but with all that, we were still only down seven in pretty bad foul trouble.”
In his final collegiate game, Nic Moore scored 14 points, tied for the game-high. He made both of SMU’s 3-pointers in the game and made three jump shots early in the second half, the third of which briefly brought SMU within three points, 38-35.
Cincinnati followed with a 13-5 run to build an 11-point lead, 51-40, with 8:11 to go. SMU cut the lead to three, 55-52, on a Ben Moore layup with 1:55 left, but Cincinnati scored the next four points that sealed the win.
Seniors Markus Kennedy and Jordan Tolbert each scored 9 points, with Tolbert adding 13 rebounds. Kennedy scored his 1,000th career point at SMU with a free throw in the first half. He fouled out with 8:46 left in the game, picking up his fifth foul while fighting for a rebound after he missed a layup. SMU also struggled to get to the foul line.
“We shot 3 free throws in the second half, as physical as that game was,” Brown said. “But it was two teams playing hard. It’s ugly when we play Cincinnati because both teams try so hard.
Troy Caupain led Cincinnati with 14 points, while Coreontae DeBerry added 10. The Bearcats made just 1 of their 19 3-point attempts.
“When our defense was set, I thought we were pretty good,” Brown said. “I think most shots were contested.”
Even though SMU likely lost its chance at the conference title, head coach Larry Brown didn’t let the team lose perspective of the season.
“We lost to a really good team in a great environment, but we had a heck of a year. Nic, Markus and Jordan set the bar pretty high for everybody,” Brown said. “I think everybody knows the contribution they made.”
