Before the Hall of Fame Classic, first-year University of Cincinnati men's basketball coach Wes Miller said the two-day tournament wasn't "all or nothing."
Miller said if the Bearcats did well, they would exit with more confidence. If they struggled, Miller said his team would learn and grow from its failures.
Well, consider this Cincinnati team's confidence at an all-time high.
The Bearcats opened the Hall of Fame Classic on Monday by thumping No. 14 Illinois 71-51, and then gave No. 13 Arkansas all it could handle in a narrow 73-67 loss to the Razorbacks in the championship game.
More: Takeaways: UC falls to No. 13 Arkansas 73-67 in Hall of Fame Classic championship game
Senior guard David DeJulius scored a game-high 24 points against Arkansas and represented Cincinnati on the all-tournament team.
"We've learned that we can compete with anybody in the country," DeJulius said. "That's not an arrogance or anything. That's just the confidence level in ourselves. We're going to move forward from this. We're going to take this as a learning experience, a confidence builder for everyone individually and us as a team, and use this to propel us as the season goes along."
More: Three keys, prediction: Cincinnati Bearcats look to spoil East Carolina's senior day
DeJulius and the Bearcats (5-1) will look to build off of their showing in Kansas City, Missouri, when they host Monmouth (4-1) on Saturday. The Hawks are riding a four-game winning streak since losing its season-opener 68-66 at Charlotte.
THE GAME Tipoff: 2 p.m. on Saturday at Fifth Third Arena
TV/Radio: ESPN+/WLW-AM (700)
Series info: This is the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
SCOUTING REPORT Monmouth (4-1)
Coach: King Rice, 11th season (165-155)
Offense: 78.6 ppg
Defense: 70.6 ppg
Projected lineup
Player (Position, Height, Key Stat)
Samuel Chaput (G, 6', 87.5% FT shooting)
Marcus McClary (G, 6'3", 11.8 ppg)
George Papas (G, 6'5', 19.8 ppg)
Myles Foster (F, 6'7", 4.4 ppg)
Walker Miller (F, 6'11", 15.2 ppg) (Wes Miller's younger brother)
Cincinnati (5-1)
Coach: Wes Miller, first season (5-1)
Offense: 74 ppg
Defense: 57.7 ppg
Projected lineup
Player (Position, Height, Key Stat)
David DeJulius (G, 6’, 12.7 ppg)
Mika Adams-Woods (G, 6’3”, 6.8 ppg)
John Newman III (G, 6’5”, 5.8 ppg)
Jeremiah Davenport (G, 6'7", 11.5 ppg)
Abdul Ado (F, 6’11”, 1.7 bpg)
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Ody Oguama
In just 17 minutes against Arkansas on Tuesday night, Oguama had 10 rebounds, including four on the offensive end. Miller later admitted he probably should've played the 6-foot-9, 225-pound reserve more. The Wake Forest transfer has been a consistent boost of energy off the bench for the Bearcats, averaging 6.5 points and five rebounds per game.
George Papas
The 6-foot-5, 185-pound graduate student leads the Hawks in minutes (37.5), points (19.8) and steals (1.4) per game this season. Papas also paces Monmouth in 3-point percentage (48.8). Papas scored a game-high 20 points as Monmouth defeated Princeton 76-64 on Wednesday night.
KEY TO THE GAME Win the battle of the brothers
North Carolina transfer Walker Miller has been a force for Monmouth this season. The 6-foot-11, 230-pound graduate student is averaging 15.2 points, a team-high 8.2 rebounds and leads the Hawks in blocks, swatting away 1.4 shots per game.
More: Travis Kelce wants undefeated Cincinnati Bearcats in the College Football Playoff
Walker is the younger brother of UC coach Wes Miller. The elder Miller will need to use his roster depth and throw several bodies at his younger brother in order for the Bearcats to win the battle inside.
RANKINGS KenPom.com: Monmouth (181); Cincinnati (71)
RPI: Monmouth (44); Cincinnati (57)
