AAC Tournament: Cincinnati rides into finals after victory over UConn
The Cincinnati Bearcats hung on after a physical battle with the UConn Huskies to advance to AAC Tournament Championship game where they will face SMU.
There has been one road block for Cincinnati when it comes to the AAC Tournament and that would be UConn.
They plowed through that road block Saturday night, as they defeated the Huskies 81-71 in the AAC Tournament semifinals.
Both teams battled back and forth early, but Cincinnati went into halftime with a 41-29 lead.
One big reason why Cincinnati pulled ahead was UConn’s leading scorer Jalen Adams running into foul trouble.
Adams picked up his third foul with more than seven minutes left until halftime. The Bearcats took advantage, outscoring the Huskies 20-10 the remainder of the half.
Despite the foul trouble, Adams finished as the Huskies leading scorer with 20 points.
Fouls became the trend in the first half. During that time, the two teams combined for 28 fouls, including two technicals and one flagrant.
Fouls continued to be the trend in the second half. By the end of the game, both teams combined for 56 fouls.
Cincinnati benefited at the free throw line as they were 38-for-46 in the game. By comparison, UConn went 20-for-25.
Gary Clark had the biggest game at the free throw line. Clark went 15-for-16 at the line to finish with a game-high 25 points for the Bearcats.
Because of the physical battle, both teams shot under 40 percent for the game. UConn shot 39 percent from the field, while Cincinnati shot 38 percent.
The Bearcats have had their share of struggles in the AAC Tournament against UConn. Last season, UConn defeated Cincinnati 104-97 in a four-overtime classic.
In 2015, UConn knocked off Cincinnati 57-54 in the AAC quarterfinals. They also met in the semifinals in 2014 with UConn coming out on top 58-56, which was during the first season of the conference.
With this win, Cincinnati will take on SMU for the third time this season. They’ve split the first two games this season.
Round one went to the Bearcats as they defeated the Mustangs 66-64 on Jan. 12. Round two went to SMU as they defeated Cincinnati 60-51 on Feb. 12.
These are far and away the two best teams in the AAC. They’re both locks to get into the NCAA Tournament, regardless of the outcome.
The rubber match takes place Sunday at 3:15 p.m. ET, which can be seen on ESPN.