by Chris Ball

Loveland, Ohio – After the Cincinnati Bearcats’ loss to West Virginia on February 2, 63-50, the season looked like it might be over. It put the Cats at 2-8 in conference play and marked a three-game losing streak. The team’s body language and its lack of fight on the court were all signals that they had lost the plot for the 2024-2025 campaign. They were getting outrebounded, outhustled, and, many said, out coached.

But as Lee Corso would say: “Not so fast, my friend!”

Cincinnati has cored 93, 84, and 85 points in their last three wins over UCF, BYU, and Utah. By the metrics of adjusted offense, it is the most efficient they’ve been in shooting the ball all year. Their odds of making the NCAA Tournament, which stood as low as 2 percent prior to this winning streak, have climbed to a humble 15 percent. While it might not seem like a lot, for a team that looked as checked out as the Bearcats did just a few short weeks ago, any signs of life are a reason to stand up and cheer.

After being held scoreless against the Mountaineers, point guard Jizzle James has found his stroke once again. During the winning streak he’s had 15, 24 and 25 points. This is all while shooting 8-14 from beyond the arc.

But it’s more than just one player. The Bearcats are being more efficient on offense. They’re hitting the glass and finally beginning to out-rebound the opposition. Their size and drive on the boards was supposed to be a strength of this team going into the season, but prior to this stretch of wins, they were losing those battles and putting them even further behind as their offense struggled to put up points.

And all of those factors will be sorely put to the test this afternoon as the Cats take on the Iowa State Cyclones. The game is at 4 PM in Ames in one of the more hostile arenas in the country. Iowa State is currently just outside the top ten on Bart Torvik’s computer rankings at number eleven. They are 27th in adjusted offense and a whopping 6th in adjusted defense.

The Bearcats have been scoring in bunches these past few games and finding their rhythm. But finding the bottom of the cup against the Cyclones will be much more difficult than probably at any other point in the season. And they’re no slouches on offense, either.

The trio of Curtis Jones, Keshon Gilbert, and Joshua Jefferson can score, rebound, and pass with equal effectiveness. And they return talented forward Milan Momcilovic to add to their talented roster.

The Bearcats are big underdogs, there is no doubt about it. This would be an insane win for them if they can pull it off. But in reality, keeping the offensive tempo and efficiency up against such a great defensive team would be a great sign. If they can keep it close it is a signal that they could be ready to make a renewed push towards the tournament.

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Christopher Ball is a longtime Loveland resident and an attorney. He graduated from Loveland High School in 2003 and was a member of the football team before going on to become a coach’s assistant at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. He has been following and rooting for the Reds and Bengals since the early 1990s and has been through the many ups and downs that fandom has wrought over the years.

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