CINCINNATI — For the first 20 minutes Saturday night, the Bearcats played like a team that was still hurting from the loss of two key players and from the pain of a brutal overtime loss Tuesday night in New Orleans to Tulane.
Wes Miller wasn’t so upset that his team missed 15 of their first 19 shots from the field or made only 10-of-34 in the first half.
No, the head coach knows that without Viktor Lakhin and Rob Phinisee, the focus must be on defense first. Even with them, for that matter, the Miller wants his team to think defense first. That’s why he was ticked off with his team getting outscored 8-0 in the final 75 seconds of the first half, allowing a pair of open threes that gave South Florida a 38-34 halftime lead.
“We need to defend a whole lot better,” Miller told Kelsey Conway on the ESPN-Plus broadcast before heading into the locker room to deliver the same message.
Ody Oguama scored a career-high 18 on a perfect 9-for-9 from the field while Jeremiah Davenport matched that, scoring 13 of his 18 in the second half, including a perfect 4-for-4 from 3-point range as the Bearcats outscored the Bulls by 23 points in the second half en route to an 84-65 win at Fifth Third Arena.
Wes Miller proud of his team's second half defense in UC's 84-65 win. pic.twitter.com/Egwe2xe1zF
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) February 12, 2023
The Bearcat defense in the second half was something that would make Gary “The Problem” Clark proud. The 2018 AAC Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year was on hand and watched as UC held USF to 11-of-29 shooting and just 1-of-9 from deep.
The defense led to great looks on the offensive end as Davenport and the Bearcats drained 7-of-10 three-point attempts.
Ody Oguama and Jeremiah Davenport each scored 18 apiece in UC win over USF. pic.twitter.com/L17WWvmZCC
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) February 12, 2023
Landers Nolley II had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. David DeJulius had 10 points, nine assists and five rebounds.
