Dayton 12/20 8:30 ESPNU

[BearKatz]

Nice job on Aziz knocking down both FTs...

[Rufus]

Everybody hitting free throws except Mitchell.

[BearKatz]

Good tough win! Back to back wins against X and Dayton! The Cats showed HEART hanging in there and fighting!

[Gmann]

I'm happy for the win but they have to learn how to play a complete game against better teams. The talent is there but a lot to work on.

[UC4me]

Seems like a long time for our Cats to hit free throws at the end of the game. Nice job there. Both teams played blistering defense. So great to be back in relevancy in basketball. I loved their intensity tonight.

[Bearcat9796]

ill take that shooting with that defense every game, and a W of course. I'm sure theyl have a game or 2 where they'll need to be reminded about that effort, but I feel good that it'll be pretty consistent

[bearcatbret]

So how are those guys that have reminded us of the fond memories of the Huggins and Cronin era defense feel tonight?

[London 'Cat]

They have to keep the foot on the gas and not play not to lose. They did not score a FG after 6:45. They were up by 16 at 8 minutes and were fortunate to hit FTs at an unusual rate.

[longtimefan]

Great win, some officiating crews would have called about 80 fouls, 60 on Dayton. Dayton grabs a lot of D, tonight they got away with it. Also, my opinion of that arena hasn’t changed. Anything but monster truck shows shouldn’t be held there.

[Pharmfam]

Big win by the Cats. Probably even bigger than the X win.

[bearcatjd]

Awesome game& win. Let’s keep it going 🏀👍🍺

[Jeff Burk]

Big win by the Cats. Probably even bigger than the X win.

I totally agree. I was at the game with 2 friends, one a Dayton fan and the other a UK fan. I got the impression that the UD fan thought they would definitely win. The UK fan was impressed with our defense and I think that is why we won. It was a great atmosphere and a huge win. If we can continue to play that kind of defense and shoot at a higher percentage then I think we will be a formidable team.

[leo from jersey]

So how are those guys that have reminded us of the fond memories of the Huggins and Cronin era defense feel tonight?

I loved defense going back to George Smith and Ed Jucker. I was happy with the moving hands tonight. I was very very happy with the offensive rebounding to start the game. Of course that meant misses, but those rebounds are intimidating. The defense went down a notch at the end, but overall it was bearcatty. I would have liked to have seen one basket in the last 7 minutes though by the Cats. The lobs (poor passing, UD defense) were not working as were the layups. The ball was just not going in team rhythm to the inside guys. The inside competition will only get better as Zed Key was the height for UD. He did have a good/active game. Considering how UD beat Marquette and what Marquette did to X today, I have to look to UC defense. My hope is that they keep it up. The rebounding may be harder going ahead, but it was there tonight. S.L while not having his best shooting night, played guys his size and was putting his body on them. That reminded me of the Huggins and Cronin eras. Very entertaining.

[leo from jersey]

I totally agree. I was at the game with 2 friends, one a Dayton fan and the other a UK fan. I got the impression that the UD fan thought they would definitely win. The UK fan was impressed with our defense and I think that is why we won. It was a great atmosphere and a huge win. If we can continue to play that kind of defense and shoot at a higher percentage then I think we will be a formidable team.

Nothing is bigger than beating X (kansas or Houston may be close) especially after the last few years, but this was a great win.

[bearcatbret]

Dayton is averaging nearly 80 points per game and did not reach 60. Here is a summary for the good guys. Skillings, Defense Lead No. 19 Bearcats Past No. 22 Dayton - University of Cincinnati Athletics