PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Junior Jarron Cumberland needed only seven points to reach 1,000 points and left no doubt as he scored a career-high 34 points to lead rv/- Cincinnati past USF, 82-74, in front of 10,347 fans at Fifth Third Arena. The Bearcats are the first American Athletic Conference men's basketball team to reach four league victories this season.
Tuesday, January 15
Cumberland took care of the milestone early on, becoming the 53rd 1,000-point scorer in UC history with a four-point play at the 9:54 mark and kept it rolling from there.
Before he was finished, Cumberland had matched his jersey number with a career-high 34 points in a performance whose equal hadn't been seen at UC since Troy Caupain scored 37 points on March 11, 2016, in a four-overtime loss to Connecticut in the quarterfinals of the American Athletic Conference tournament.
Cumberland was 9-for-20 from the field with two 3-pointers and made 14-of-16 free throws, giving him 25-of-28 on his last two games. He also had three assists and four steals in 38:26. He had 19 points at halftime.
Cincinnati (15-3, 4-1) has won 10 in a row against USF and is 19-1 all-time at home against the Bulls (12-5, 2-3).
UC head coach Mick Cronin was forced to watch most of Cumberland's performance in the UC locker room after he was ejected for the first time in his coaching career when he was called for two technical fouls with 18:00 left in the second half.
USF was able to tie the score at 55-55 on two free throws by Laquincy Rideau, who led USF with 26 points before he fouled out with 1:37 remaining. UC then reeled off eight straight points to take a 63-55 lead on Tre Scott's layup with 9:44 remaining, prompting USF coach Brian Gregory to call timeout.
USF came back to tie the score at 65-65. Cumberland then scored five of UC's next seven points to give the Bearcats a 72-67 lead with 4:29 to play. A three-pointer pulled the Bulls to within two. Justin Jenifer made two free throws for UC and Brooks converted a three-point play to give the Bearcats a 77-70 lead with 2:32 remaining.
The Bulls missed six of their last eight field goal attempts and were outscored 10-4 after pulling within two with 4:12 remaining.
The Bearcats were out-rebounded for the third-straight game, this time 27-23, but came on strong in the second half after being out-rebounded by 10 in the first. They forced 21 USF turnovers, which resulted in 30 points, and made 29-of-32 free throws compared to the Bulls' 22-of-26.
But ultimately the night belonged to Cumberland, the junior from Wilmington High School, who finished the game with 1,027 career points, leaving him at No. 50 on UC's career scoring list with a season and a half to go.
UPCOMING GAMES
| WEDNESDAY 1.16.19 |
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Temple |
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ECU |
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7 p.m. |
Greenville, N.C. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:ESPN3 |
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UConn |
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Tulsa |
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7 p.m. |
Tulsa, Okla. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:ESPNEWS |
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Houston |
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SMU |
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9 p.m. |
Dallas, Texas |
Live Stats Live Video TV:ESPNEWS |
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UCF |
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Wichita State |
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10 p.m. |
Wichita, Kan. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:CBSSN |
| SATURDAY 1.19.19 |
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Tulsa |
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UCF |
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Noon |
Orlando, Fla. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:ESPNU |
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Cincinnati |
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Wichita State |
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2 p.m. |
Wichita, Kan. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:CBS |
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SMU |
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Memphis |
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4 p.m. |
Memphis, Tenn. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:ESPNU |
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Penn |
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Temple |
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5 p.m. |
Philadelphia, Pa. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:CBSSN |
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Tulane |
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UConn |
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7:30 p.m. |
Hartford, Conn. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:CBSSN |
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Houston |
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USF |
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8 p.m. |
Tampa, Fla. |
Live Stats Live Video TV:ESPNU |