by Dick Weiss, for The American
DALLAS -- SMU junior guard Ben Emelogu III and the rest of his team had a month to think about that agonizing 66-64 loss at Cincinnati, the one where Sterling Brown's three point shot in the final 10 seconds looked like it was on target, then rolled off the rim and came to Ben Moore, who missed a put back attempt to tie the score.
Emelogu personally took care of the payback, making a pair of three-pointers and a tie-breaking free throw in a game-deciding 15-0 second half run as the 25
th-ranked Mustangs gained a measure of revenge in their American rematch, defeating the 11
th-ranked Bearcats, 60-51, before a sellout out crowd of 7,518 at a deafening Moody Coliseum that included former President George W. Bush, who was front and center, sporting his SMU t-shirt.
The win propelled SMU to a half-game lead over Cincinnati in The American, which had won 15 straight games and was unbeaten in conference play. SMU (22-4), which has won 18 of its last 19 games, is 12-1 in The American. Cincinnati (21-3) is 11-1 in a year where the American has become a two-team race at the top with three weeks to play.
“We've been chasing them for a long time,'' SMU coach Tim Jankovich said. "Cincinnati put a lot of pressure on us. Finally to get the opportunity to get them back here…it does feel good to finally, finally be in this position.''
Both these teams have an NCAA Tournament look about them and could be dangerous opponents in first and second round games if they are selected.
But Jankovich was cautious about his team getting too far ahead of itself. That's why he wasn't sure whether the NCAA Men’s Basketball Committee should be revealing a Top 16 seeds a month before Selection Sunday.
"If they're listening, I think it's wonderful,'' he said. "If they're the ones who are making the selections, I think it's just absolutely wonderful that they did that.
"But truthfully, if they're not listening, I don't know if it's helping. I think this: most people in college basketball are trying to win their conference. It's a big deal. It's a hard deal. It's an incredible accomplishment when you are a conference champion. To me, that's the truth test. Eighteen games, all the things that come at you.
''And people, nowadays, who's in and who's out. Who's in, who's out. You're on the bubble. You're in. And, I know from the fans' standpoint, it's good, but it's just taking the eye off the ball. Here's what I wish would happen. We talk about conference races. When we're done, we talk about conference tournaments…Then we figure out who gets an automatic bid. Then, we talk about who's in and who's out. I think it would be healthier. We're acting like, to me, these games don’t mean anything. Why even play them? I think we're getting ahead of ourselves. Nobody asks my opinion but I will tell you this. I think it's dangerous for the players because, lord knows, they're on social media all the time and to them, if it shows they're in, they think they're in.”
Jankovich quipped, “You're not in. You're not in. You're a game or two away from being out. And kids today, I don't think they totally understand that. But hey, if the committee is listening, it's wonderful and we hope if they find it in their heart, they will put us in the NCAA tournament.''
The most concerning aspect about an early reveal is that it can potentially plant a seed in the committee's minds about the value of teams who are not in the Power 5 or the Big East with looking at an entire body of work.
Top--ranked, unbeaten Gonzaga was the only non-brand name team included in the Top 16 and the Zags were a fourth No. 1 seed whom Michigan State AD and committee chair Mark Hollis suggested might be just one loss away from being dropped to a two seed, even though the Zags had beaten Florida, Arizona, Iowa State and St. Mary's before the announcement.
Conventional wisdom suggests that the Atlantic 10, The American, the Missouri Valley and the West Coast are the only leagues other than the ACC, SEC, Big 12, Big 10, Pac-12 and Big East with a shot at multiple bids.
And there is no guarantee of a high seed. That's why national television opportunity conference games like SMU-Cincinnati are so important in terms of improving their resume.
The Mustangs, which got 18 points from Semi Ojeleye, 13 from Sterling Brown and 11 apiece from Shake Milton and Emelogu, a transfer from Virginia Tech, made the most out of their sequel against the Bearcats, shooting 62.5 percent in the second half when they limited Cincinnati to just 23 points, 25 percent shooting and no field goals in the final four minutes.
"That's winning time, the last five minutes of the game,'' said Emelogu, a sixth man who scored 9 of his 11 points in the second half. "We came together and said, "We got to get kills.' We got some tough guys on this team. We're very competitive. Coach will tell us Sterling Brown will argue over a card game. He's going to give it his all every game. No matter if we're down 5-10 points, we're going to fight.''
The Mustangs' physical defense has held teams to 66 points or less in 19 straight games. "It's a make or miss game Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin said. "They pack it in so tight and they're so physical, especially in their own gym.'
SMU got it done against Cincinnati with just six players after 6-5 guard Dashawn McDowell was ruled out with a concussion. Ojeleye played 39 minutes. Milton played 38. Moore, who fouled out, played 35 and Brown, who had four personals, played 33. It is a tricky thing, especially when you are playing against a smart team like the Bearcats.
"I've gotten a quick education on the short bench,'' Jankovich said.
It is a tricky business, but this SMU team never seems to panic, even after the Bearcats went on a 12-0 run to take a 40-31 lead early in the second half. "We tried to trick them,'' Jankovich said. "Lull them into a false sense of security. Not a great time to dig ourselves into a hole. But I thought we did a great job playing hard-nosed, committed defense without fouling. That was going be the big thing. If we got into foul trouble we were going to be in a big mess. But our guys managed to play through that mess.
"Our guys just wanted it that bad.''