# 2023–24 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team represented the University of Cincinnati in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bearcats were led by third-year head coach Wes Miller. The team played their home games at Fifth Third Arena as first-year members of the Big 12 Conference. They finished the season 22–15, 7–11 in Big 12 play to finish in a tie for 11th place. As the No 12 seed in the Big 12 tournament, they defeated West Virginia and Kansas before losing to Baylor in the quarterfinals. They received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament. As a No. 2 seed, they defeated San Francisco and Bradley before losing to Indiana State in the quarterfinals.
The season was the first for the Bearcats in the Big 12 as they had left the American Athletic Conference to join the Big 12 in July 2023.

## Previous season

The Bearcats finished the 2022–23 season 23–13, 11–7 in AAC play to finish in fourth place. They defeated Temple before losing to Houston in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament. The Bearcats received an at-large bid to the NIT, where they defeated Virginia Tech and Hofstra before falling to Utah Valley in the quarterfinals.

## Offseason
### Player departures

Cincinnati departing players :
| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason |
| Kalu Ezikpe | F | 6' 8" | 240 | Graduate Student | Lawrenceville, GA | Completed college eligibility |
| Landers Nolley II | G | 6' 7" | 208 | Graduate Student | Atlanta, GA | Play professionally |
| Mika Adams-Woods | G | 6' 3" | 180 | Graduate Student | Syracuse, NY | Transferred to St. Bonaventure |
| David DeJulius | G | 6' 0" | 200 | Graduate Student | Detroit, MI | Completed college eligibility |
| Rob Phinisee | G | 6' 1" | 187 | Graduate Student | Lafayette, IN | Completed college eligibility |
| Jeremiah Davenport | G | 6' 7" | 215 | Graduate Student | Cincinnati, OH | Transferred to Arkansas |
| Jarrett Hensley | F | 6' 8" | 220 | Junior | Merriam, KS | Transferred to Southern Illinois |
* 1 2 Ezikpe and Phinese both were graduate transfers in the 2022–23 season, with Ezikpe having graduated from Old Dominion and Phinese from Indiana.

### Incoming transfers

Cincinnati incoming transfers :
| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Old school | Remaining Eligibility |
| DaVeon Thomas | G | 6' 0" | 190 | Junior | Columbia, SC | Kilgore College | Two years |
| Jamille Reynolds | F | 6' 10" | 285 | Senior | Saint Petersburg, FL | Temple | Two years |
| CJ Fredrick | G | 6' 3" | 185 | Graduate Student | Cincinnati, OH | Kentucky | Two years |
| Simas Lukošius | G | 6' 8" | 225 | Junior | Kaunas, Lithuania | Butler | Two years |
| Aziz Bandaogo | F | 7' 0" | 230 | Senior | Dakar, Senegal | Utah Valley | Two years |

### Class of 2023

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Rayvon Griffith SG | Cincinnati, OH | AZ Compass Prep | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | May 1, 2022 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 83 ||||||
| Jizzle James PG | Orlando, FL | Olympia High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | October 4, 2022 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 84 ||||||
| 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 2023 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 4, 2022. "2023 Cincinnati Basketball Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 4, 2022. "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 4, 2022. "Cincinnati 2023 Basketball Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved October 4, 2022. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| November 6, 2023* 9:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | UIC | W 69–58 | 1–0 | 15 – Thomas | 8 – Tied | 3 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (9,936) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 10, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Detroit Mercy | W 93–61 | 2–0 | 14 – Fredrick | 12 – Reed | 5 – Lukošius | Fifth Third Arena (4,267) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 12, 2023* 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Eastern Washington | W 85–73 | 3–0 | 26 – Lahkin | 11 – Lahkin | 5 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (3,063) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 19, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Northern Kentucky | W 90–66 | 4–0 | 25 – Skillings | 14 – Lahkin | 7 – Lukošius | Fifth Third Arena (10,018) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 22, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Georgia Tech | W 89–54 | 5–0 | 15 – Lahkin | 9 – Bandaogo | 4 – Tied | Fifth Third Arena (11,756) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 28, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Howard | W 86–81 $^{OT}$ | 6–0 | 19 – Lahkin | 6 – Tied | 4 – Thomas | Burr Gymnasium (1,324) Washington, D.C. |
| December 3, 2023* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Florida Gulf Coast | W 99–62 | 7–0 | 19 – Tied | 12 – Skillings | 6 – Lahkin | Fifth Third Arena (9,812) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 9, 2023* 6:30 p.m., FS1 | | at Xavier Crosstown Shootout | L 79–84 | 7–1 | 19 – James | 10 – Bandaogo | 3 – Tied | Cintas Center (10,724) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 12, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Bryant | W 85–53 | 8–1 | 14 – Fredrick | 17 – Bandaogo | 3 – James | Fifth Third Arena (9,303) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 16, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | vs. Dayton Hoops Classic | L 68–82 | 8–2 | 14 – Lukošius | 14 – Bandaogo | 2 – Tied | Heritage Bank Center (12,547) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 19, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Merrimack | W 65–49 | 9–2 | 18 – Lahkin | 11 – Reynolds | 4 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (9,477) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 22, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Stetson | W 83–75 | 10–2 | 29 – Skillings | 10 – Skillings | 7 – Fredrick | Fifth Third Arena (9,762) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 29, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Evansville | W 76–58 | 11–2 | 16 – Newman III | 9 – Lakhin | 7 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (10,977) Cincinnati, OH |
| Big 12 Regular Season |||||||||
| January 6, 2024 10:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 12 BYU | W 71–60 | 12–2 (1–0) | 17 – Lakhin | 10 – Bandaogo | 3 – Lukošius | Marriott Center (16,879) Provo, UT |
| January 9, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | No. 25 Texas | L 73–74 | 12–3 (1–1) | 19 – Lukošius | 6 – Newman III | 4 – Lukošius | Fifth Third Arena (11,014) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 13, 2024 8:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 14 Baylor | L 59–62 | 12–4 (1–2) | 24 – Skillings | 7 – Newman III | 5 – Lukošius | Foster Pavilion (7,500) Waco, TX |
| January 16, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | No. 19 TCU | W 81–77 $^{OT}$ | 13–4 (2–2) | 21 – Thomas | 7 – Newman III | 6 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (10,314) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 20, 2024 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | No. 15 Oklahoma | L 65–69 | 13–5 (2–3) | 17 – Lukošius | 7 – Tied | 6 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (12,406) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 22, 2024 9:00 p.m., ESPN | | at No. 7 Kansas | L 69–74 | 13–6 (2–4) | 16 – Skillings | 11 – Bandaogo | 3 – Thomas | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| January 27, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | UCF | W 68–57 | 14–6 (3–4) | 21 – Skillings | 7 – Tied | 6 – Lukošius | Fifth Third Arena (12,112) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 31, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at West Virginia rivalry | L 65–69 | 14–7 (3–5) | 15 – Skillings | 9 – Bandaogo | 4 – Thomas | WVU Coliseum (10,349) Morgantown, WV |
| February 3, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at No. 15 Texas Tech | W 75–72 | 15–7 (4–5) | 16 – Lukošius | 10 – Bandaogo | 4 – Thomas | United Supermarkets Arena (15,098) Lubbock, TX |
| February 10, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | No. 5 Houston | L 62–67 | 15–8 (4–6) | 13 – Skillings | 10 – Newman III | 3 – Newman III | Fifth Third Arena (12,715) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 13, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | No. 10 Iowa State | L 59–68 | 15–9 (4–7) | 16 – James | 11 – Skillings | 3 – Tied | Fifth Third Arena (11,819) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 17, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at UCF | W 76–74 | 16–9 (5–7) | 15 – Skillings Jr. | 9 – Reynolds | 3 – Thomas | Addition Financial Arena (8,624) Orlando, FL |
| February 21, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Oklahoma State | L 76–80 | 16–10 (5–8) | 17 – Lukošius | 10 – Skillings Jr. | 4 – Lukošius | Fifth Third Arena (11,029) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 24, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at TCU | L 57–75 | 16–11 (5–9) | 13 – Thomas | 9 – Bandaogo | 4 – Lukošius | Schollmaier Arena (6,090) Fort Worth, TX |
| February 27, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 1 Houston | L 59–67 | 16–12 (5–10) | 11 – Tied | 9 – Lakhin | 6 – Thomas | Fertitta Center (7,352) Houston, TX |
| March 2, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Kansas State | W 74–72 | 17–12 (6–10) | 18 – Newman III | 8 – Bandaogo | 5 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (11,974) Cincinnati, OH |
| March 5, 2024 8:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Oklahoma | L 71–74 $^{OT}$ | 17–13 (6–11) | 16 – James | 9 – Skillings Jr. | 3 – Thomas | Lloyd Noble Center (6,124) Norman, OK |
| March 9, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | West Virginia rivalry | W 92–56 | 18–13 (7–11) | 17 – Skillings Jr. | 7 – Bandaogo | 7 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (11,914) Cincinnati, OH |
| Big 12 Tournament |||||||||
| March 12, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (11) | vs. (14) West Virginia First Round/rivalry | W 90–85 | 19–13 | 31 – Lukošius | 13 – Bandaogo | 4 – Tied | T-Mobile Center Kansas City, MO |
| March 13, 2024 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 | (11) | vs. (6) No. 16 Kansas Second Round | W 72–52 | 20–13 | 25 – Skillings Jr. | 10 – Newman III | 3 – Lukosius | T-Mobile Center (18,261) Kansas City, MO |
| March 14, 2024 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 | (11) | vs. (3) No. 14 Baylor Quarterfinals | L 56–68 | 20–14 | 15 – Skillings Jr. | 6 – Newman III | 4 – Lukosius | T-Mobile Center (19,135) Kansas City, MO |
| NIT |||||||||
| March 20, 2024 9:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (2) | San Francisco First Round - Indiana State Bracket | W 73–72 $^{OT}$ | 21–14 | 28 – Lukosius | 9 – Newman III | 7 – Thomas | Fifth Third Arena (3,899) Cincinnati, OH |
| March 23, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (2) | (3) Bradley Second Round - Indiana State Bracket | W 74–57 | 22–14 | 25 – James | 9 – Newman III | 4 – Newman III | Fifth Third Arena (4,732) Cincinnati, OH |
| March 26, 2024 9:00 p.m., ESPN | (2) | at (1) Indiana State Quarterfinals - Indiana State Bracket | L 81–85 | 22–15 | 26 – Lukosius | 12 – Skillings Jr. | 5 – James | Hulman Center (8,057) Terre Haute, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Source