'Disappointed in the result but not disappointed in our team': UC basketball falls in Memphis

MEMPHIS – In the first conference game of the season that went down to the wire, the Cincinnati Bearcats cracked in the closing seconds.

After Cincinnati split its first two American Athletic Conference games – both were contests that trended toward lopsided at times – UC couldn't maintain a narrow lead with a minute to play against the Memphis Tigers and ultimately lost, 87-80, Sunday at FedExForum.

The matinee evolved into an emotional, back-and-forth game in which the Bearcats held late, narrow leads on multiple occasions. That included an 80-79 lead with one minute to go. But Memphis senior guard Tyler Harris responded with a jumper for 81-80 with 40 seconds to play.

That proved to be the game-winning score. Memphis went on to ice the contest from the free-throw line.

After the game was tied at 57 with 11 minutes to go, Memphis outscored Cincinnati 30-23 down the stretch.

The clutch-shooting Lester Quinones of Memphis went for 18 points and Harris scored a team-high 19 in the Memphis (9-5, 3-1 AAC) victory.

Four Tigers hit double-figure scoring, including highly touted freshman and reigning AAC Freshman of the Week, Josh Minott (14 points, 7-of-12 shooting). Emoni Bates chipped in 12 points.

Despite early and persistent foul trouble, UC's Jeremiah Davenport shot the lights out from deep as he went 7-of-10 from 3-point range, hit each of his first seven attempts and finished with a game-high 21 points.

Mika Adams-Woods and David DeJulius both poured in 15 points, and John Newman III had 12 despite being helped off the floor due to a first-half injury from which he would later return.

The Bearcats amassed 16 3-pointers on 30 attempts, matching a FedExForum record for 3-pointers that was previously held outright by Savannah State, according to UC athletics.

The Bearcats shot a commendable 47% from the field, but were undone in the rebounding facet of the contest.

UC established a strong presence at and above the rim early with two blocks in the opening minutes but couldn't maintain that presence as it was out-rebounded 41-31.

That, in part, resulted in 22 second-chance points for Memphis. The Bearcats had just seven.

"Great fight and great toughness tonight. You know, (we) made a ton of winning plays. I just wish we were one possession better," UC head coach Wes Miller said afterward. "We're doing some things to foul there at the end, trying to take some chances because I never was worried about how much you lose (by). We're just trying to win but it's a one-possession game and we had our chances. Just wish we were one possession better.

"Disappointed in the result but not disappointed in our team."

The loss capped a hectic eight-day period in which the Bearcats (11-5, 1-2 AAC) opened conference play with three games. The results were divergent and included a Jan. 1 loss to Tulane in which UC trailed by 26 points in the first half, a rebound performance and rout of SMU on Thursday, and then Sunday's loss.

More: UC Bearcats, Wes Miller down SMU for first AAC win of the season

For Memphis, the Tigers moved to 3-1 in-conference and solidified their position near the top of the AAC early in league play.

After trailing by 10 in the first half, UC slowly chipped away and cut its deficit to six by the intermission. The Bearcats then opened the second half on an early 9-2 run that saw the visitors take their first lead since 1-0 in the opening minutes of the game.

Memphis hit back, just as it had all game, and that resulted in the 57-57 stalemate with 11 minutes remaining. From there, the intensity ratcheted up, the stadium get rowdier, and all of these factors set the stage for a climactic closing stretch.

The game featured 13 lead changes. Most of those occurred in the closing minutes as the teams went back and forth in seesaw fashion.

The first half was a battle of attrition with UC seemingly laboring to keep pace. Memphis led the majority of the period by virtue of 43% shooting and timely responses to Bearcats' runs.

Davenport also was hamstrung by foul trouble. He picked up his third foul at the 5:56 mark of the first half. He was efficient in the five minutes he played and scored six points, but his time on the court was far less than Miller envisioned.

In addition to his 21 points, Davenport finished the night with six rebounds, an assist and no turnovers in 22 minutes.

"That's just who I am," Davenport said. "My teammates find a way to get me the ball and I just let my talents show... The coaches and my teammates kept telling me, 'stay in the game, stay focused, I'm good.' So, I just stuck with that and went out and did what I did."

Miller said he was unfazed by Davenport's two early fouls and is typically inclined to let his players continue on when carrying two first-half fouls. Davenport's third foul, however, forced Miller to reconsi

"(Davenport's) got it really going tonight and you take him out and he's like, 'man, I'm in a rhythm,'" Miller said of managing Davenport's foul situation. "Just trying to get him to understand I'm not taking him out because I want him to be out of the game. We're trying to kind of manage the foul situation, and I thought as a staff we managed it pretty well."

All things considered, UC showed well in its first AAC road matchup under Miller, which was staged in front of 14,502 spectators.

DeJulius credited Memphis for the win but had encouraging remarks for his team following the defeat.

"We played connected on both ends as well," DeJulius said. "Normally with a loss, you might come out and say we didn't fight hard (but) we put our bodies on the line. We dove for loose balls. We stayed connected. We made mistakes too but I think when you have adversity and continue to stay connected, you have an opportunity to stay in the game."

Another busy week in the AAC awaits the Bearcats with East Carolina scheduled to visit Fifth Third Arena on Wednesday (6 p.m.) and UC scheduled to travel to Wichita State next Sunday (noon).

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Memphis Tigers: UC loses in FedExForum