2020–21 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team represents the University of Cincinnati in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bearcats are led by second-year head-coach John Brannen. The team plays their home games at Fifth Third Arena as members of the American Athletic Conference.

2020–21 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball
Conference	American Athletic Conference
Head coach	John Brannen (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Jayson Gee (2nd season) Sean Dwyer (2nd season) Tim Morris (2nd season)
Home arena	Fifth Third Arena

2020–21 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Cincinnati	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
East Carolina	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
Houston	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
Memphis	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
SMU	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
South Florida	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
Temple	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
Tulane	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
Tulsa	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
UCF	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
Wichita State	0	–	0		–			0	–	0		–
As of August 14, 2020; Rankings from AP Poll 2021 AAC Tournament

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 7 overtime games.[1] 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.[2]

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.[3][4] In late July, both would option to return for their final seasons of eligibility.[5][6]

Offseason

Departing players

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Chris McNeal	0	G	6'1"	190	Graduate Student	Jackson, Tennessee	Completed athletic eligibility
Trevor Moore	5	G	6'5"	195	Junior	Houston, Texas	Transferred to Morgan State (mid-season)[7]
Tre Scott	13	F	6'8"	225	RS Senior	Darien, Georgia	Graduated
Jaevin Cumberland	21	G	6'3"	185	Graduate Student	Wilmington, Ohio	Completed athletic eligibility
Prince Toyambi	24	F	6'7"	225	RS Freshman	Kinshasa, DR Congo	Transferred to Georgia Southern[8]
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)[9]

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.[10][11]
David DeJulius	G	6'0"	190	Junior	Detroit, MI	Transferred from Michigan. Under NCAA transfer rules, DeJulius will have to sit out for the 2020–21 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.[12][13]

Recruiting class of 2020

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

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[14]
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   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[15]
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   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[16]
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   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[17]
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   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[18]
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   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 media poll

Preseason Awards

Roster

2020–21 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 David DeJulius  6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Michigan Detroit, Michigan G 1 Zach Harvey 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Prolific Prep Topeka, Kansas G 2 Keith Williams 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School Brooklyn, New York G 3 Mike Saunders Jr. 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Wasatch Academy Indianapolis, Indiana F 13 Tari Eason 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Garfield High School Seattle, Washington F 20 Mamoudou Diarra 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Jr 22ft Academy Bamako, Mali G 23 Mika Adams-Woods 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So New Hampton School Syracuse, New York G/F 24 Jeremiah Davenport 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Hargrave Military Academy Cincinnati, Ohio F 25 Rapolas Ivanauskas 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) GS Colgate Barrington, Illinois C 30 Viktor Lakhin 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 218 lb (99 kg) Fr CSKA Moscow Anapa, Russia G 31 Sam Martin (W) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) RS Jr Summit Country Day School Cincinnati, Ohio C 33 Chris Vogt 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Sr Northern Kentucky Mayfield, Kentucky F 44 Adam Cook (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Marysville High School Marysville, Ohio G 45 Mason Madson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Mayo High School Rochester, Minnesota G 55 Gabe Madson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Mayo High School Rochester, Minnesota F -- Rob Banks (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Gould Academy Bracknell, England	Head coach John Brannen (Marshall) Assistant coach(es) Jayson Gee (Charleston) Sean Dwyer (Michigan State) Tim Morris (Stanford) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster Last update: March 4, 2020

Schedule and results

In a unique announcement on Twitter, John Brannen and Chris Mack exchanged tweets announcing a renewal of the Cincinnati–Louisville rivalry with the first game at Fifth Third Arena on November 13.[19] The Bearcats will travel to Knoxville for the second part of a home-and-home series with the Tennessee Volunteers. Cincinnati will also travel to Brooklyn to compete in the NIT Season Tip-Off.[20] The Bearcats will host the Xavier Musketeers in the annual Crosstown Shootout.

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
*		TBD						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
Non-Conference Regular Season
November 10, 2020*		Western Illinois						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
November 13, 2020*		Louisville Rivalry						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
November 19, 2020*		at Northern Kentucky						BB&T Arena  Highland Heights, KY
November 25, 2020*		vs. Arizona, Texas Tech, or St. John's NIT Season Tip-Off						Barclays Center  Brooklyn, NY
November 27, 2020*		vs. Arizona, Texas Tech, or St. John's NIT Season Tip-Off						Barclays Center  Brooklyn, NY
November 30, 2020*		Lipscomb						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
December 12, 2020*		at Tennessee						Thompson–Boling Arena  Knoxville, TN
December 15, 2020*		Furman						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
December 19, 2020*		at Georgia						Stegeman Coliseum  Athens, GA
December 22, 2020*		Richmond						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
TBD*		Xavier Crosstown Shootout						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
AAC Regular Season
		East Carolina						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		at East Carolina						Williams Arena  Greenville, NC
		Houston						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		at Houston						Fertitta Center  Houston, TX
		at Memphis Rivalry						FedEx Forum  Memphis, TN
		Memphis Rivalry						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		SMU						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		at SMU						Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
		at South Florida						Yuengling Center  Tampa, FL
		South Florida						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		at Temple						Liacouras Center  Philadelphia, PA
		Temple						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		at Tulane						Devlin Fieldhouse  New Orleans, LA
		Tulane						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		Tulsa						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		at Tulsa						Reynolds Center  Tulsa, OK
		at UCF						Addition Financial Arena  Orlando, FL
		UCF						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
		at Wichita State						Charles Koch Arena  Wichita, KS
		Wichita State						Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
AAC Tournament
		vs. TBD						Dickies Arena  Fort Worth, TX
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Final
AP																				Not released
Coaches

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings

References

1. http://digital.learfieldimgcollege.com/cincinnati-mbb-review/full-view.html
2. Page, Fletcher (12 Mar 2020). "American Athletic Conference cancels men's basketball tournament amid coronavirus concerns". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved 17 Apr 2020.
3. "UC's Williams says he will enter 2020 NBA Draft, but keeping options open". WKRC.com. WKRC-TV. 27 Mar 2020. Retrieved 15 Apr 2020.
4. Vogt, Chris [@ChrisVogt33] (21 Apr 2020). "Just a kid from Mayfield" (Tweet). Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via Twitter.
5. Vogt, Chris [@ChrisVogt33] (23 July 2020). "Last go around. #ContractYear" (Tweet). Retrieved 23 July 2020 – via Twitter.
6. Goodman, Jeff [@GoodmanHoops] (31 July 2020). "Cincinnati's Keith Williams is withdrawing from the NBA draft, per source" (Tweet). Retrieved 31 Jul 2020 – via Twitter.
7. Borzello, Jeff [@jeffborzello] (9 December 2019). "Cincinnati guard Trevor Moore has entered the transfer portal, source told ESPN" (Tweet). Retrieved 2 February 2020 – via Twitter.
8. Toyambi, Prince [@BIGPRINCE19] (8 May 2020). "Next Chapter, Georgia Southern University let's Go!!" (Tweet). Retrieved 10 May 2020 – via Twitter.
9. Page, Fletcher. "Jay Sorolla leaves Cincinnati basketball, will turn pro". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
10. Borzello, Jeff [@jeffborzello] (14 Apr 2020). "Colgate grad transfer Rapolas Ivanauskas announced his commitment to Cincinnati. 6-foot-10, has perimeter range, averaged 13.1 points and 7.6 rebounds. Top-20 grad transfer" (Tweet). Retrieved 14 Apr 2020 – via Twitter.
11. "Ivanauskas Joins Cincinnati Men's Basketball". GoBearcats.com. GoBearcats. 15 Apr 2020. Retrieved 15 Apr 2020.
12. Clark, Dave (16 Apr 2020). "Michigan transfer David DeJulius commits to Cincinnati Bearcats". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved 16 Apr 2020.
13. "DeJulius Transferring to Cincinnati". GoBearcats.com. GoBearcats. 17 Apr 2020. Retrieved 17 Apr 2020.
14. Clark, Dave (11 June 2019). "Mike Saunders Jr. gives Cincinnati Bearcats Class of 2020 commitment". Cincinnati Enquirer.
15. Page, Fletcher (1 September 2019). "UC basketball: Gabe and Mason Madsen commit to play for John Brannen". Cincinnati Enquirer.
16. Page, Fletcher (1 September 2019). "UC basketball: Gabe and Mason Madsen commit to play for John Brannen". Cincinnati Enquirer.
17. Evans, Corey (22 December 2019). "Cincinnati wins out with four-star forward Tari Eason". Rivals.
18. "UC basketball team lands forward from Russia". WKRC-TV. 15 Jun 2020.
19. Rauch, Jeremy [@FOX19Jeremy] (30 Apr 2020). "Big college basketball news: UC will host Louisville on Friday, Nov. 13. A source really, really close to the situation told me to follow the tweets" (Tweet). Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via Twitter.
20. "Cincinnati to Play in 2020 NIT Season Tip-Off". GoBearcats.com. Retrieved 27 November 2019.