Bearcats defeat NJIT 94-67, improve to 5-1

Cincinnati improved to 5-1 on the season Monday night following their 94-67 victory over NJIT.

Five players scored in double figures in the victory, led by freshman forward Shon Abaev, who finished with a career high of 20 points and eight rebounds.

Meanwhile, Moustapha Thiam (15 points, 10 rebounds), Sencire Harris (12 points), Jordi Rodriquez (10 points), and Halvine Dzellat (10 points) all scored in

double figures.

Dzellat’s ten points were also a new career high, with the previous coming in the win over Western Carolina earlier this season.

Shon Abaev's Career Night.  

The freshman phenom finished with a career-high 20 points and eight rebounds in the victory. Abaev set the tone early after knocking down his first field goal attempt of the night. Abaev was coming off arguably his worst shooting performance of the season in the loss to Louisville.

“I work out multiple times a day. The coaches probably think it’s a little too much, but that is what got me here.” Abaev told reporters. “I love being in the gym. That is how I became the player I am today. I want to keep a level head. I know it’s never going to be a straight road to where you want to go. There will be its ups and downs, but being able to stay calm and believing in yourself and trusting the process is something a lot of people in my circle close to me preach.”

Baba Miller Injury Update.

Cincinnati forward Baba Miller did not play tonight in the victory over NJIT after suffering a hip injury on Friday vs Louisville. The team announced he would not play tonight as they will continue to monitor his status on a “Day-to-Day basis”.

Update from Wes Miller.

“He couldn't check back into the game vs Louisville on Friday night. You just don’t check back into a game vs a team like Louisville if you’re not injured. He certainly has an injury. He hasn’t practiced since Friday and was unable to do anything leading up to this game tonight. I don’t think it is a long-term injury, but it is a day-to-day thing for certain. I don’t have an update on where he is, but I knew on Saturday morning that he wasn’t going to be able to play tonight.”

Miller noted that his status for Wednesday was still “up in the air” as the team prepares for their matchup vs Eastern Michigan.

The Rundown

Cincinnati started strong with consecutive triples from Kerr Kriisa and Shon Abaev, taking a 6-0 lead. Both teams struggled early, with Cincinnati shooting 3-11 and NJIT 2-11 in the first five minutes. The Bearcats' offense remained stagnant, but they held an 8-5 lead at the under-16 media timeout.

The Bearcats extended their lead to 10 after ten unanswered following the conversion from Sencire Harris to complete the three-point play.

Wes Miller’s Bearcats squad looked to play inside and out early, which was a great sight to see after Friday night's loss against Louisville. Which, Miller stated, following that game, Cincinnati would be a team that would have the advantage on the interior for the majority of their games this season. That seemed to be the case here in the early minutes of this contest, to say the least.

Cincinnati then extended the lead to 38-23 following a five-point swing after buckets from Jordi Rodriquez and Halvine Dzellat. However, it was all Bearcats in the first half after slashing 42% from the field, while shooting 32% from behind the arc over the first twenty minutes of action. However, NJIT dominated the glass in the early portion of this contest as they took advantage of Cincinnati’s size with Baba Miller out for tonight.

Freshman phenom Shon Abaev rattled off seven straights for Cincinnati to start the second half, sparking a 9-0 run for the Bearcats to force the NJIT timeout. The Bearcats' lead was now up to 20, as they led 51-31 with 17:20 left to play.

The Bearcats rattled off nine unanswered following the triple from Rodriquez to take a 63-37 lead. For Cincinnati, their offense started to find its stride as they started off the second half on a 24-6 run over the first eight minutes after Harris knocked home a deep contested three.

Cincinnati’s offense continued to run as they controlled an 88-50 lead with just over six minutes left to play. Meanwhile, all 10 Bearcats who entered the game up to this point have all recorded a bucket, which was a great sign heading into the final stretch of this one.

Up Next

The Bearcats (5-1) will be back in action this Wednesday night at 7pm as they welcome Eastern Michigan (3-3) to Fifth Third Arena.