# 2018–19 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team

The 2018–19 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team represented the University of Cincinnati in the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bearcats were led by 13th-year head coach Mick Cronin, and played its home games at the newly renovated Fifth Third Arena as members of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season 28–7, 14–4 in AAC play, finishing in second place. They defeated SMU, Wichita State, and No. 1 seed Houston to win the AAC tournament for the second consecutive year, and received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As the No. 7 seed in the South region, they were upset by No. 10 seed Iowa in the first round.

## Previous season

The Bearcats finished the 2016–17 season 31–5, 16–2 in AAC play to win the regular season championship. They defeated SMU, Memphis, and Houston to win the AAC tournament and received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As the No. 2 seed in the West region, they defeated Georgia State in the first round before being upset by Nevada in the second round.

## Offseason
### Departing players

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Jacob Evans | 1 | G/F | 6'6" | 210 | Junior | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | Declared for NBA draft; selected 28th overall by the Golden State Warriors |
| Gary Clark | 11 | F | 6'8" | 225 | Senior | Clayton, North Carolina | Graduated |
| Jackson Bart | 14 | F | 6'5" | 210 | RS Sophomore | Bartlesville, Oklahoma | Walk-on; graduated |
| Kyle Washington | 24 | F | 6'9" | 230 | RS Senior | Champlin, Minnesota | Graduated |
On September 13, 2018 Associate Head Coach Larry Davis resigned before the start of the season. In October, Greg Youncofski was named as the third assistant coach for the 2018-19 season.

### Recruiting class of 2018

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Logan Johnson PG | Mountain View, California | Saint Francis High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Sep 14, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 68 ||||||
| Laquill Hardnett SF | Nottingham, Maryland | Perry Hall High School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Feb 26, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Rashawn Fredricks SF | St. Croix, Virgin Islands | Motlow State Community College | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Apr 21, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Prince Gillam Toyambi PF | Kinshasa, DR Congo | Fresno High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Aug 31, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Cincinnati 2018 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 20, 2017. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 20, 2017. ||||||

## Preseason
### AAC media poll

The AAC media poll was released on October 15, 2018, with the Bearcats predicted to finish second in the AAC.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | UCF | 114 (6) |
| 2 | Cincinnati | 107 (3) |
| 3 | Houston | 103 (2) |
| 4 | Memphis | 85 (1) |
| 5 | UConn | 75 |
| 6 | Temple | 74 |
| 7 | SMU | 63 |
| 8 | Wichita State | 60 |
| 9 | Tulsa | 48 |
| 10 | Tulane | 23 |
| 11 | East Carolina | 22 |
| 12 | USF | 18 |

### Preseason Awards

American Athletic Conference
* All-AAC First Team - Jarron Cumberland
Lindy's Sports
* All-Conference First Team - Jarron Cumberland
Athlon Sports
* All-AAC First Team - Jarron Cumberland
Street & Smith's
* All-Conference - Jarron Cumberland
* All-Newcomer - Rashawn Fredricks

## Roster
### Depth chart

| Pos. | Starting 5 | Bench 1 | Bench 2 |
| C | Nysier Brooks | Eliel Nsoseme | |
| PF | Trevon Scott | Mamoudou Diarra | |
| SF | Jarron Cumberland | Rashawn Fredricks | John Koz |
| SG | Keith Williams | Trevor Moore | Sam Martin |
| PG | Justin Jenifer | Cane Broome | Logan Johnson |
Source

## Schedule and results

The Bearcats had a pre-season tour in Canada, playing three teams on the trip. The Bearcats will reopen Fifth Third Arena against Ohio State on November 7, 2018.
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| August 5, 2018* 2:00pm | | at Ottawa | W 85–57 | | 18 – Williams | 7 – Tied | 4 – Jenifer | Jean de Brébeuf College Montréal, Québec |
| August 6, 2018* 7:00pm | | at Carleton | L 67–86 | | 12 – Cumberland | 8 – Nsoseme | 2 – Tied | Ravens Nest Arena Ottawa, Ontario |
| August 7, 2018* 5:30pm | | at McGill | W 79–53 | | 17 – Cumberland | 5 – Tied | 5 – Cumberland | Love Competition Hall (161) Montréal, Québec |
| November 1, 2018* 7:00pm | | Tusculum | W 68–41 | | 15 – Broome | 10 – Scott | 3 – Jenifer | Fifth Third Arena (10,101) Cincinnati, OH |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 7, 2018* 6:00pm, ESPN2 | | Ohio State | L 56–64 | 0–1 | 22 – Cumberland | 6 – Tied | 5 – Jenifer | Fifth Third Arena (12,012) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 13, 2018* 7:00pm, FSOH/ESPN3 | | North Carolina Central Emerald Coast Classic First Round | W 73–51 | 1–1 | 15 – Williams | 7 – Brooks | 6 – Jenifer | Fifth Third Arena (10,037) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 16, 2018* 7:00pm, ESPN3 | | Milwaukee | W 74–63 | 2–1 | 17 – Broome | 10 – Tied | 6 – Johnson | Fifth Third Arena (10,163) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 19, 2018* 7:00pm, ESPN3 | | Western Michigan Emerald Coast Classic Second Round | W 78–52 | 3–1 | 27 – Cumberland | 10 – Brooks | 6 – Cumberland | Fifth Third Arena (8,998) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 23, 2018* 7:00pm, CBSSN | | vs. George Mason Emerald Coast Classic Semifinal | W 71–55 | 4–1 | 21 – Broome | 8 – Scott | 3 – Jenifer | The Arena at NWFSC (1,250) Niceville, FL |
| November 24, 2018* 7:00pm, CBSSN | | vs. Ole Miss Emerald Coast Classic Championship | W 71–57 | 5–1 | 25 – Cumberland | 9 – Scott | 4 – Broome | The Arena at NWFSC (1,250) Niceville, FL |
| November 27, 2018* 7:00pm, FSOH | | Arkansas–Pine Bluff | W 105–49 | 6–1 | 13 – Jenifer | 7 – Scott | 6 – Cumberland | Fifth Third Arena (8,513) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 1, 2018* 6:00pm, CBSSN | | at UNLV | W 65–61 | 7–1 | 15 – Williams | 8 – Williams | 6 – Jenifer | Thomas & Mack Center (9,572) Las Vegas, NV |
| December 4, 2018* 7:00pm, FSOH/ESPN3 | | Northern Kentucky | W 78–65 | 8–1 | 22 – Scott | 10 – Scott | 5 – Cumberland | Fifth Third Arena (11,218) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 8, 2018* 2:00pm, ESPN2 | | Xavier Crosstown Shootout | W 62–47 | 9–1 | 19 – Cumberland | 10 – Scott | 9 – Jenifer | Fifth Third Arena (12,513) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 15, 2018* 8:30pm, SECN | | at No. 18 Mississippi State | L 59–70 | 9–2 | 21 – Cumberland | 8 – Brooks | 4 – Jenifer | Humphrey Coliseum (9,120) Starkville, MS |
| December 19, 2018* 9:00pm, ESPN2 | | UCLA | W 93–64 | 10–2 | 25 – Cumberland | 6 – Brooks | 5 – Jenifer | Fifth Third Arena (12,689) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 22, 2018* 2:00pm, FSOH/ESPN3 | | South Carolina State | W 77–56 | 11–2 | 17 – Brooks | 8 – Brooks | 5 – Jenifer | Fifth Third Arena (11,623) Cincinnati, OH |
| AAC Regular Season |||||||||
| January 2, 2019 6:30pm, CBSSN | | Tulane | W 93–61 | 12–2 (1–0) | 22 – Cumberland | 7 – Cumberland | 5 – Tied | Fifth Third Arena (10,689) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 5, 2019 1:00pm, CBSSN | | at East Carolina | L 71–73 | 12–3 (1–1) | 18 – Cumberland | 9 – Scott | 4 – Cumberland | Williams Arena (4,238) Greenville, NC |
| January 10, 2019 7:00pm, ESPN2 | | at Tulsa Thursday Night Showcase | W 70–65 $^{OT}$ | 13–3 (2–1) | 16 – Broome | 9 – Scott | 6 – Broome | Reynolds Center (4,342) Tulsa, OK |
| January 12, 2019 8:00pm, ESPN2 | | UConn Saturday Showcase | W 74–72 $^{OT}$ | 14–3 (3–1) | 22 – Cumberland | 6 – Tied | 7 – Cumberland | Fifth Third Arena (11,375) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 15, 2019 7:00pm, ESPNews | | South Florida | W 82–74 | 15–3 (4–1) | 34 – Cumberland | 6 – Brooks | 5 – Broome | Fifth Third Arena (10,347) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 19, 2019 2:00pm, CBS | | at Wichita State | W 66–55 | 16–3 (5–1) | 18 – Cumberland | 11 – Scott | 2 – Cumberland | Charles Koch Arena (10,254) Wichita, KS |
| January 24, 2019 7:00pm, ESPN2 | | Tulsa Thursday Night Showcase | W 88–64 | 17–3 (6–1) | 23 – Cumberland | 11 – Scott | 5 – Tied | Fifth Third Arena (10,484) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 27, 2019 12:00pm, CBSSN | | at Temple | W 72–68 | 18–3 (7–1) | 25 – Cumberland | 8 – Cumberland | 3 – Tied | Liacouras Center (6,652) Philadelphia, PA |
| February 2, 2019 8:00pm, CBSSN | | SMU | W 73–68 | 19–3 (8–1) | 24 – Cumberland | 9 – Cumberland | 5 – Cumberland | Fifth Third Arena (12,256) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 7, 2019 7:00pm, ESPN2 | No. 25 | at Memphis Rivalry/Thursday Night Showcase | W 69–64 | 20–3 (9–1) | 17 – Cumberland | 9 – Scott | 6 – Cumberland | FedEx Forum (16,363) Memphis, TN |
| February 10, 2019 4:00pm, ESPN | No. 25 | at No. 12 Houston | L 58–65 | 20–4 (9–2) | 27 – Cumberland | 10 – Brooks | 2 – Broome | Fertitta Center (7,039) Houston, TX |
| February 17, 2019 1:00pm, ESPN | | Wichita State | W 72–62 | 21–4 (10–2) | 27 – Cumberland | 8 – Tied | 5 – Cumberland | Fifth Third Arena (12,223) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 21, 2019 7:00pm, ESPN2 | | UCF Thursday Night Showcase | W 60–55 | 22–4 (11–2) | 12 – Tied | 7 – Tied | 6 – Cumberland | Fifth Third Arena (12,377) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 24, 2019 2:00pm, ESPN | | at UConn | W 64–60 | 23–4 (12–2) | 12 – Williams | 8 – Scott | 4 – Cumberland | XL Center (11,904) Hartford, CT |
| February 27, 2019 9:00pm, CBSSN | No. 23 | at SMU | W 52–49 | 24–4 (13–2) | 12 – Cumberland | 12 – Brooks | 4 – Cumberland | Moody Coliseum (5,747) Dallas, TX |
| March 2, 2019 8:00pm, ESPNU | No. 23 | Memphis Rivalry | W 71–69 | 25–4 (14–2) | 26 – Cumberland | 12 – Brooks | 3 – Tied | Fifth Third Arena (12,392) Cincinnati, OH |
| March 7, 2019 7:00pm, ESPN2 | No. 20 | at No. 25 UCF Thursday Night Showcase | L 55–58 | 25–5 (14–3) | 20 – Scott | 9 – Scott | 5 – Cumberland | CFE Arena (9,141) Orlando, FL |
| March 10, 2019 12:00pm, CBS | No. 20 | No. 12 Houston | L 69–85 | 25–6 (14–4) | 20 – Cumberland | 8 – Scott | 5 – Broome | Fifth Third Arena (12,701) Cincinnati, OH |
| AAC Tournament |||||||||
| March 15, 2019 7:00pm, ESPNU | (2) No. 24 | vs. (10) SMU Quarterfinals | W 82–74 | 26–6 | 26 – Cumberland | 12 – Scott | 8 – Cumberland | FedExForum (7,356) Memphis, TN |
| March 16, 2019 5:00pm, ESPN2 | (2) No. 24 | vs. (6) Wichita State Semifinals | W 66–63 | 27–6 | 13 – Brooks | 9 – Brooks | 4 – Cumberland | FedExForum (7,819) Memphis, TN |
| March 17, 2019 3:15pm, ESPN | (2) No. 24 | vs. (1) No. 11 Houston Championship | W 69–57 | 28–6 | 33 – Cumberland | 8 – Tied | 2 – Tied | FedExForum (7,223) Memphis, TN |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 22, 2019* 12:15pm, CBS | (7 S) No. 22 | vs. (10 S) Iowa First Round | L 72–79 | 28–7 | 19 – Jenifer | 7 – Scott | 4 – Cumberland | Nationwide Arena (19,641) Columbus, OH |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. S=South. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Awards and milestones
### All-American

* Honorable Mention: Jarron Cumberland

### American Athletic Conference honors
#### All-AAC Awards

* Player of the Year: Jarron Cumberland

#### All-AAC First Team

* Jarron Cumberland

#### Player of the Week

* Week 3: Jarron Cumberland
* Week 7: Jarron Cumberland
* Week 10: Jarron Cumberland
* Week 11: Jarron Cumberland

#### Weekly Honor Roll

* Week 5: Trevon Scott
* Week 9: Jarron Cumberland
* Week 12: Jarron Cumberland
* Week 13: Jarron Cumberland
* Week 14: Jarron Cumberland
* Week 15: Cane Broome
* Week 16: Jarron Cumberland

### AAC Tournament honors
#### AAC Tournament MVP

* Jarron Cumberland

#### All Tournament Team

* Jarron Cumberland
* Trevon Scott
Source

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | — | — | — | — | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | RV | RV | RV | 25 | RV | RV | 23 | 20 | 24 | 22 |
| Coaches | RV | RV | — | — | — | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | — | RV | RV | 23 | RV | 25-T | 22 | 19 | 23 | 24 |
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings