NICEVILLE, FLA. — Cincinnati shot a sizzling 71.4 percent in the first half and never let up coasting to its fifth straight victory with a 69-51 decision over Middle Tennessee State Friday night to advance to the championship of Emerald Coast Classic.
The Bearcats built a 39-17 halftime lead and expanding it to 47-22.
“That was as well as we have played on offense all year,” said Cincinnati. We really challenged them coming into here to play better and together. We are such a young team, we are still learning and growing.”
Middle Tennessee State, which fell to 3-2, didn’t help matters with cold shooting finishing the game at 34.7 percent.
“This is a great learning experience for our team,” said Middle Tennessee State coach Kermit Davis. “We are growing and we are still figuring out where we need to be and what we need to do. This kind of game only helps our team.”
“When they jumped out on us early we started forcing some shots and getting out of what we like to do. But, that was because Cincinnati played us so well. They are extremely athletic and play above the rim really well.”
Sophomore guard Troy Caupain led a balanced Cincinnati attack with 11 points, while reserve Jermain Sanders add 10 points.
The Blue Raiders made just five of 26 shots in the first half, while Cincinnait only missed six shots making 15 of 21 shots.
DeShaun Morman, Gary Clark and Farad Cobb added nine points apiece for Cincinnati which was playing its first game away from home.
“We were able to get out to the early lead and extend our defense, which really changed the way Kermit’s team played,” added Cronin. “I did not want Kermit playing point guard from the bench, and what I mean by that is that I did not want him to be able to settle his kids and get them into a flow offensively from the bench. He has really good guards and he is a tremendous coach and we wanted to put pressure on them.”
Darnell Harris came off the bench to pace Middle Tennessee State with 15 points.
The Bearcats will face the winner of Friday’s other semifinal round between No. 23 ranked Creighton and Mississippi.
POST-GAME QUOTES
MTSU HEAD COACH KERMIT DAVIS
“First, give Cincinnati all the credit. They extended the defense and forced us into some bad situations. They played extremely physical and really pushed us away from the rim.”
“This is a great learning experience for our team. We are growing and we are still figuring out where we need to be and what we need to do. This kind of game only helps our team.”
“When they jumped out on us early we started forcing some shots and getting out of what we like to do. But, that was because Cincinnati played us so well. They are extremely athletic and play above the rim really well.”
“This tournament is going to grow into one of the top tournaments in the country, I have no doubt. Maury (Hanks) runs a first class tournament and this is as good as it gets. I can see this will be a tournament that will be one of the best all the way around. The hospitality is great from the people here in the community and the level of basketball is outstanding.”
MTSU PLAYER DARNELL HARRIS
“It was good to come back and play where I played last year. I saw a lot of familiar faces and that was good. I wanted to play well. I was able to make some shots and get my confidence going. I have to do a better job rebounding, though.”
“They (Cincinnati) are a really good team. They kind of took us out of our rhythm in the first few minutes and we starting forcing some shots and got is out of our offense.”
“It was fun to play against Farad (Cooper). We had a good team here last year but it was good to play against him. He was trash-talking all summer and leading up to the game. But, he is a great player and it was good to play against him.”
CINCINNATI HEAD COACH MICK CRONIN
“That was as well as we have played on offense all year. We really challenged them coming into here to play better and together. We are such a young team, we are still learning and growing.”
“We were able to get out to the early lead and extend our defense, which really changed the way Kermit’s team played. I did not want Kermit playing point guard from the bench, and what I mean by that is that I did not want him to be able to settle his kids and get them into a flow offensively from the bench. He has really good guards and he is a tremendous coach and we wanted to put pressure on them.”
“Give Kermit’s team credit, they did not quit, and his teams never will. They played hard all the way and that is good for us. Some teams won’t do that, they will lay down, but this was better for us.”
“This is already a fantastic tournament and an exceptional venue. Give this tournament a couple of years and you won’t be able to get a ticket to get in. I really believe that. Maury (Hanks) runs first-class tournaments and this will be one of the best exempt tournaments in the country. The people here have been outstanding.”
CINCINNATI GUARD FARAD COBB
“It was good to come back to where I played last year and play again. I don’t know why but I was a little nervous before the game. I just wanted to play well. I was able to hit that shot in the corner for the three and that helped me settled down.”
