Preview: Cincinnati at Northern Kentucky

After a 3-0 homestand to begin the season, the No. 18 ranked Cincinnati Bearcats will face their first road test of the season when they travel 15 minutes south to Truist Arena in Highland Heights to meet the Northern Kentucky Norse. 

The Norse are led by Head Coach Darrin Horn, who defeated Wes Miller and the Bearcats two years ago at NKU, 64-51.

"That was really hard when we went over there two years ago," Miller told media following UC's win over Nicholls Friday night. "I know this, Darrin Horn's a great coach. They lost a tough game at the buzzer (Nicholls) with the lead down the stretch. They will respond and be ready for the Bearcats. We've got to get our team ready."

In that game, Cincinnati led 40-36 at the half but managed to score just 11 points in the second half.

Both teams enter Tuesday night having played the same opponent in their most recent game.

Cincinnati defeated Nicholls Friday night, 86-49, while NKU lost Thursday night to Nicholls, 61-59.

The Norse are 0-3 to begin the season after also losing to Florida State (74-62) and Purdue (72-50) in their first two games. 

NKU received four first-place votes in the Horizon League Men's Basketball preseason poll and were picked to finish third. 

Players to know:

6-foot-7 Guard Trey Robinson (10.7 ppg)

Scored 19 points and pulled down 7 rebounds against Nicholls.  Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year last season. Preseason All-League First Team Selection.

6-foot-4 Guard Josh Dilling (14.3 ppg)

18 points against Nicholls on 4-of-10 shooting from three. Also scored 18 points in the season opening loss against Florida State. Has attempted 28 three-pointers through three games. 

6-foot-5 Guard Sam Vinson (5.7 ppg)

Returns for his senior season after playing just 13 games last season, due to injury. Preseason All-League First Team Selection and named to the Horizon League's All-Defensive Team during the 22-23 season.

6-foot-9 Forward Keeyan Itejere (8.3 ppg)

Nine points, five rebounds, three blocks in 61-59 loss to Nicholls. Played one season at Marquette before transferring to NKU during the 2023 season. 

6-foot-3 Guard Randall Pettus II (5.0 ppg)

Finished with 12 points, 7 rebounds in the loss to Florida State. Three points, four rebounds combined in the two games against Purdue and Nicholls.

6-foot-8 Forward LJ Wells (3.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg)

6-foot-2 Guard Hubertas Pivorius (5.3 ppg)

6-foot 4 Guard Dan Gerezegher Jr. (2.7 ppg)

Things to watch:

- The Bearcats will once again be without junior guard Dan Skillings, after a successful knee procedure last Monday. It is expected Skillings will miss two weeks, with the timeline being week-to-week after that. Senior point guard Day Day Thomas is still day-to-day and likely a game time decision.

The duo combined for 45 points in last season's 90-66 win over NKU. Skillings scored 25 points, while Thomas scored 20.

- Nicholls out rebounded the Norse 57-33, with 23 offensive rebounds. Cincinnati out-rebounded Nicholls 46-32. With the Bearcats height and athleticism advantage, this is another game that they should dominate on the glass. 

- Speaking of rebounding, Dillon Mitchell is currently leading UC on the glass (8.7 rpg) and scoring in double-figures each of the first three contests. Cincinnati is +78 its last two games when he's been on the floor

- Simas Lukosius has been on fire from three to start the season. After struggling with injuries early last season, Lukosius has started this season 10-for-14 from deep, with his 71.4 percent clip tying for third in Division I. He leads UC with 17.7 ppg and 75.0 percent from the field to go with a 16:2 A/TO ratio (13th nationally).

- The Norse have converted just 24.3 percent of their three-point attempts but haven't been shy to let it loose from deep. Through three games, Darrin Horn's team is averaging 24 attempts from beyond the arc. Cincinnati boasts a +39.7 scoring margin this year, which includes a 43.3 to 25.5 difference in three-point percentage.

Final Thoughts:

NKU enters Tuesday night 187th in Kenpom.

The Norse should have success within the Horizon this year, but this isn't a game that should be close. I expect NKU to make shots early and feed off the energy from their home crowd but once Cincinnati settles in, they should be able to use their depth to pull away. The Bearcats are bigger, stronger, faster, more athletic, and simply a more talented team. 

Cincinnati is currently a 14.5 point favorite with the over/under set at 137.5.

How to watch:

ESPN+

7:00 PM