Three Man Weave: Cincinnati Takes Out Bradley to Advance in NIT

Cincinnati Moved on in the NIT.

Cincinnati Bearcats guard Jizzle James (2) rises for a shot in the second half of a college / Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY

CINCINNATI —  The Bearcats overcame the absence of Day Day Thomas (broken foot) and more to take out the Bradley Braves 74-57 in the NIT on Saturday. 

Cincinnati has now advanced to the NIT Quarterfinals in back-to-back seasons as they try to take home some hardware this March.

Jizzle James, Dan Skillings Jr., and Simas Lukošius combined for over 60 points as those three players hit a stride in a do-or-die game. 

Cincinnati is now 20-14 against Bradley all-time.

Three-Mas Keeps Raining

The Bearcats' sharpshooter picked up where he left off on Wednesday with another barrage of triples to help the drive the Cincinnati victory (17 points, 5-of-13 from deep). Lukošius just keeps dialing in that jumper and it's keeping UC alive in March.

Lukošius is shooting roughly 45% from deep in the past five games on close to 10 attempts per game. Those are prime Steph Curry numbers and a sign of his ultimate potential as the program gets excited for a big 2024-25 season. Cincinnati is comfortable with getting him free off set plays and it's beautiful to watch.

The defense has to be lightning quick, or the Lithuanian is killing you on any pindown at any moment.

Defense Stifles

The Braves had no answer for Aziz Bandaogo (eight rebounds, three blocks) and the Bearcats' consistent size on the inside. UC held them to 17-of-37 from two-point range and the pair of small playmaking guards had a lot of trouble getting to their spots and finding open cutters.

It was a tighter performance than the close win against San Francisco, as Cincinnati did a great job splitting the rebound responsibilities and played clinical man-to-man defense. 

Cincinnati has a simple formula this season: Hold opponents to 61 or less. 

They are now 10-0 when doing that, as they've proven to have enough offensive depth when their defense is on point and creating easier looks on the other end. 16 points off turnovers on seven steals were a big factor in the blowout.

Jizzle Takes Advantage

James got his first career start with Day Day Thomas suffering a broken foot against San Francisco. It turned into a golden opportunity for the freshman, dialing up arguably his best game as a Bearcats with a career-high in points and minutes (38 minutes and 25 points).

The midrange was COOKIN for Jizzle, showing that lost art can still be highly effective. It melded nicely with Lukošius's impact at the next level for a 1-2 offensive punch. 

James has the speed, basketball IQ, and moxy to be one of the best sophomores in the country next season, and he's got another chance to stamp one of the stronger freshman seasons in program history against Indiana State or Minnesota.

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