AAC Basketball: SMU locks down defensively to end Cincy's 15 game win streak

In a top 25 AAC basketball showdown, the SMU Mustangs had a big second half to knock off the Cincinnati Bearcats in Dallas.

The Cincinnati Bearcats were riding a 15-game winning streak into Moody Coliseum on Sunday while the SMU Mustangs were looking to protect their home court with their own winning streak on the line.

Thanks to an impressive defensive performance in the second half, Tim Jankovich and the Mustangs prevailed, 60-51, to take sole possession of first place in the AAC. SMU trailed 40-31 with 16:10 remaining in the first half, but used a 19-2 run to overcome what looked like another classic Cincinnati victory.

Jankovich’s team had four players in double figures, including Semi Ojeleye, who led the team with 18 points on 5-of-11 shooting (3-of-5 threes). Sterling Brown had a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds while Shake Milton put up 11 points despite his five turnovers.

Even Ben Emelogu II got in on the fun, as the junior guard scored 11 points off the bench, giving the Mustangs a much-needed spark of energy and aggressiveness.

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The Mustangs were lacking toughness for the first 25 minutes of the evening, but after three straight threes to tie game at 41, Moody Coliseum turned into bedlam and the team’s defense took over from there.

SMU held Cincinnati to 35 percent shooting for the game, 34 percent from beyond the arc and only sent the Bearcats to the free throw line nine times. They also forced 12 turnovers and held Cincinnati point guard and one of the team’s best offensive players, Troy Caupain, to two points on 0-of-7 shooting.

The Bearcats were standing around on the offensive end in the second half, but their inability to put the ball in the basket was more about SMU’s lateral quickness, rim protection, and team communication than anything else. They gave Kyle Washington (11 points) and Gary Clark (six points) no easy looks around the rim, contested every shot that Jacob Evans launched in the second half and gave up just four points to Cincy’s bench.

It was a remarkable effort for a team that doesn’t necessarily get a lot of national attention.

Moving forward, the Mustangs are likely to shoot up the rankings on Monday afternoon. They split the season series with Cincinnati and have five winnable games down the stretch before making the trek to Hartford for the AAC postseason tournament. That means the Mustangs could be on a 14 game stretch by the time Championship Week rolls around.

With an unselfish offensive team that has a versatile big and experienced players around him, and a defensive team that is stout and tough, the Mustangs could be a sneaky second-weekend squad.

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Meanwhile, the Bearcats have nothing to hang their heads about. They are still an elite defensive team and an improving offensive group that simply lost a tough conference road game. They beat the Mustangs earlier in the season in Cincy and are still only 0.5 games out of first place. With USF on deck, the Bearcats should bounce back rather easily.

AAC Basketball: SMU locks down defensively to end Cincy’s 15 game win streak

By Carmine Carcieri | Feb 12, 2017

In a top 25 AAC basketball showdown, the SMU Mustangs had a big second half to knock off the Cincinnati Bearcats in Dallas.

More from Busting Brackets