# 2020–21 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team represented the University of Cincinnati in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bearcats were led by second-year head-coach John Brannen. The team played their home games at Fifth Third Arena as members of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season 12–11, 8–6 in AAC play to finish in fifth place. They defeated SMU and Wichita State in the AAC tournament before losing to Houston in the championship game.
On April 3, 2021, the school placed head coach Brannen on paid leave pending an investigation after six Bearcats players decided to transfer following the season. A week later, the school fired Brannen following an investigation into his conduct.

## Previous season

The Bearcats finished the 2019–20 season 20–10, 13–5 in AAC play, finishing tied for first place and winning a share of the regular season title. The Cats kept fans on the edge of their seats with a nation-leading seven overtime games. They entered as the No. 1 seed in the AAC tournament, which was ultimately cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Bearcats were awarded the automatic bid to the 2020 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament by the conference, before it too was cancelled.

## Offseason

In the spring, Keith Williams and Chris Vogt both announced that each would enter the 2020 NBA draft, while retaining the option to return for their senior seasons. In late July, both would option to return for their final seasons of eligibility.

### Departing players

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Chris McNeal | 0 | G | 6'1" | 190 | Graduate Student | Jackson, Tennessee | Completed college eligibility |
| Trevor Moore | 5 | G | 6'5" | 195 | Junior | Houston, Texas | Transferred to Morgan State (mid-season) |
| Trevon Scott | 13 | F | 6'8" | 225 | RS Senior | Darien, Georgia | Graduated |
| Jaevin Cumberland | 21 | G | 6'3" | 185 | Graduate Student | Wilmington, Ohio | Completed college eligibility |
| Prince Toyambi | 24 | F | 6'7" | 225 | RS Freshman | Kinshasa, DR Congo | Transferred to Georgia Southern |
| John Koz | 32 | G | 6'1" | 200 | Senior | Cleveland, Ohio | Walk-on; graduated |
| Jarron Cumberland | 34 | G | 6'5" | 210 | Senior | Wilmington, Ohio | Graduated |
| Jaume Sorolla | 35 | C | 6'11" | 240 | Graduate Student | Tortosa, Spain | Left team (mid-season) |
* 1 2 McNeal and Jaevin Cumberland were both graduate transfers in the 2019–20 season, with McNeal having graduated from Tennessee Tech and Cumberland from Oakland.

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Rapolas Ivanauskas | F | 6'10" | 230 | Graduate Student | Barrington, IL | Transferred from Colgate after graduating. Will have one year of eligibility beginning immediately. |
| David DeJulius | G | 6'0" | 190 | Junior | Detroit, MI | Transferred from Michigan. DeJulius was granted a waiver for immediate eligibility. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |

### 2020 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Mike Saunders PG | Indianapolis, IN | Wasatch Academy | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | June 11, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Gabe Madsen SF | Rochester, MN | Mayo High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | August 31, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Mason Madsen CG | Rochester, MN | Mayo High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | August 31, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Tari Eason PF | Seattle, WA | Garfield High School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | December 21, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 79 ||||||
| Viktor Lakhin C | Anapa, Russia | CSKA Moscow | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 218 lb (99 kg) | June 15, 2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: 247Sports: 39 ||||||
| 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 2020 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 15, 2020. "2020 Cincinnati Bearcats Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 15, 2020. "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 15, 2020. "2020 Cincinnati Bearcats Basketball 24/7 Sports Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved July 15, 2020. ||||||

## Preseason
### AAC preseason media poll

On October 28, The American released the preseason Poll and other preseason awards
Coaches Poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Houston | 99 (2) |
| 2 | Memphis | 90 (2) |
| 3 | SMU | 80 |
| 4 | Cincinnati | 77 |
| 5 | South Florida | 61 |
| 6 | Tulsa | 50 |
| 7 | Wichita State | 44 |
| 8 | UCF | 37 |
| 9 | East Carolina | 34 |
| 10 | Temple | 18 |
| 11 | Tulane | 15 |

### Preseason awards

* All-AAC First Team - Keith Williams
* All-AAC Second Team - Chris Vogt

## Roster

* Preseason: Viktor Lahkin underwent knee surgery, leading him to sit out indefinitely.
* December 12, 2020: Mamoudou Diarra decided to opt-out of the rest of the season due to COVID-19 concerns.
* December 30, 2020: Mamoudou Diarra decided to rejoin the team, while Rapolas Ivanauskas had elected to leave the team to pursue a professional career.
* December 31, 2020: Gabe Madsen announced he has elected to opt-out for the remainder of the season.
* February 16, 2021: Zach Harvey decided to opt-out of the rest of the season.
* February 25, 2021: David DeJulius decided to opt-out of the rest of the season.
* March 11, 2021: David DeJulius decided to rejoin the team.

## Schedule and results

The Bearcats are currently scheduled to travel to Knoxville for the second part of a home-and-home series with Tennessee and begin a home-and-home series on the road at Georgia. Cincinnati and Xavier announced they would maintain the Crosstown Shootout during the season.

### COVID-19 impact

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Bearcats schedule is subject to change, including the cancellation or postponement of individual games, the cancellation of the entire season, or games played either with minimal fans or without fans in attendance and just essential personnel.
* 3 previously scheduled games were cancelled (vs. Louisville, vs. Richmond, @ NKU), as well as the Bearcats appearance in the NIT Season Tip-Off (alongside Arizona, Texas Tech and St. John's). As a response to all these outcomes, UC attempted to organize an Indianapolis-based MTE alongside Duquesne and Loyola-Chicago. Ironically, that too would be cancelled due to COVID.
* The games vs. Temple originally scheduled for February 4 was moved to Philadelphia.
* The game @ Temple rescheduled for February 12 was moved to Cincinnati.
* The games vs. Houston originally scheduled for February 21 was moved to Houston.
* Cincinnati added a game vs. Vanderbilt on March 4 after a previously scheduled game was cancelled.
Prior to the start of the season, UC announced there would be no fans in Fifth Third Arena; only permitting fans in the arena later in the season if it's safe and appropriate to do so. UC was later granted an attendance variance by the State of Ohio which allows for crowds of around 1,135 fans inside the arena for games against Tulane (Feb. 26), Memphis (Feb. 28) and SMU, rescheduled as Vanderbilt, (March 4).

### Schedule

* Unless otherwise noted, all games had limited or no attendance.
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| December 2, 2020* 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Lipscomb | W 67–55 | 1–0 | 16 – Adams-Woods | 7 – Vogt | 4 – Tied | Fifth Third Arena (300) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 6, 2020* 3:00 p.m., ESPN | | Xavier Crosstown Shootout | L 69–77 | 1–1 | 18 – Williams | 8 – Eason | 6 – DeJulius | Fifth Third Arena (300) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 9, 2020* 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Furman | W 78–73 | 2–1 | 27 – Williams | 9 – DeJulius | 5 – DeJulius | Fifth Third Arena (300) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 12, 2020* 12:30 p.m., SECN Alt. | | at No. 12 Tennessee | L 56–65 | 2–2 | 14 – Davenport | 7 – Eason | 7 – DeJulius | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| December 16, 2020 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | South Florida | L 71–74 | 2–3 (0–1) | 15 – Williams | 9 – Eason | 4 – Saunders Jr. | Fifth Third Arena (300) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 19, 2020* 8:00 p.m., SECN | | at Georgia | L 68–83 | 2–4 | 18 – Davenport | 6 – Tied | 2 – Tied | Stegeman Coliseum (1,638) Athens, GA |
| December 22, 2020 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at UCF | L 70–75 | 2–5 (0–2) | 19 – Williams | 10 – Williams | 5 – DeJulius | Addition Financial Arena (1,181) Orlando, FL |
| January 2, 2021 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Tulsa | L 66–70 | 2–6 (0–3) | 18 – Williams | 7 – Tied | 4 – DeJulius | Fifth Third Arena (300) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 6, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at SMU | W 76–69 | 3–6 (1–3) | 18 – Davenport | 10 – Davenport | 12 – DeJulius | Moody Coliseum (1,568) University Park, TX |
| January 10, 2021 4:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Wichita State | L 76–82 | 3–7 (1–4) | 19 – Harvey | 6 – Tied | 7 – DeJulius | Charles Koch Arena (2,025) Wichita, KS |
| January 13, 2021 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | East Carolina | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Fifth Third Arena (–) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 23, 2021 Noon, CBS | | at No. 8 Houston | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Fertitta Center (–) Houston, TX |
| January 27, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Wichita State | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Fifth Third Arena (–) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 30, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at South Florida | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Yuengling Center (–) Tampa, FL |
| February 4, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Temple | W 63–60 | 4–7 (2–4) | 26 – DeJulius | 7 – Davenport | 3 – Tied | Liacouras Center Philadelphia, PA |
| February 7, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Tulane | W 64–61 | 5–7 (3–4) | 20 – Williams | 9 – Eason | 4 – DeJulius | Devlin Fieldhouse New Orleans, LA |
| February 11, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Memphis Rivalry | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | FedEx Forum (–) Memphis, TN |
| February 12, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Temple Previously scheduled for Jan. 12 | W 71–69 | 6–7 (4–4) | 12 – Tied | 8 – Tied | 6 – Davenport | Fifth Third Arena (300) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 14, 2021 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | UCF | W 69–68 | 7–7 (5–4) | 14 – Tied | 8 – Williams | 4 – Williams | Fifth Third Arena (300) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 21, 2021 1:00 p.m., ESPN | | at No. 6 Houston | L 52–90 | 7–8 (5–5) | 11 – Davenport | 5 – Eason | 3 – Vogt | Fertitta Center (1,859) Houston, TX |
| February 24, 2021 9:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Tulsa | W 70–69 | 8–8 (6–5) | 24 – Williams | 8 – DeJulius | 6 – Williams | Reynolds Center (100) Tulsa, OK |
| February 26, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Tulane Previously scheduled for Jan. 16 | W 91–71 | 9–8 (7–5) | 27 – Davenport | 13 – Eason | 7 – Adams–Woods | Fifth Third Arena (1,135) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 28, 2021 1:00 p.m., ESPN | | Memphis Rivalry | L 74–80 | 9–9 (7–6) | 19 – Tied | 7 – Vogt | 6 – Williams | Fifth Third Arena (1,135) Cincinnati, OH |
| March 4, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | SMU | Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues | Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues | Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues | Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues | Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues | Fifth Third Arena (–) Cincinnati, OH |
| March 4, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Vanderbilt | L 68–74 | 9–10 (7–6) | 20 – Williams | 6 – Davenport | 5 – Davenport | Fifth Third Arena (2,000) Cincinnati, OH |
| March 7, 2021 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at East Carolina | W 82–69 | 10–10 (8–6) | 19 – Tied | 7 – Tied | 5 – Tied | Williams Arena (439) Greenville, NC |
| AAC Tournament |||||||||
| March 12, 2021 3:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (5) | vs. (4) SMU Quarterfinals | W 74–71 | 11–10 | 19 – Davenport | 7 – Tied | 6 – Williams | Dickies Arena (778) Fort Worth, TX |
| March 13, 2021 3:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (5) | vs. (1) Wichita State Semifinals | W 60–59 | 12–10 | 10 – Madsen | 11 – Eason | 4 – Tied | Dickies Arena Fort Worth, TX |
| March 14, 2021 3:15 p.m., ESPN | (5) | vs. (2) No. 7 Houston Championship | L 54–91 | 12–11 | 11 – Davenport | 6 – Tied | 2 – Tied | Dickies Arena Fort Worth, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Awards and honors
### American Athletic Conference honors
#### All-AAC Second Team

* Keith Williams

#### All-AAC Freshman Team

* Tari Eason

#### Weekly honor roll

* Week 3: David DeJulius
* Week 5: Keith Williams
* Week 7: Zach Harvey
* Week 11: David DeJulius
* Week 12: Mika Adams-Woods
* Week 15: Jeremiah Davenport
* Week 16: Keith Williams