Wichita State vs. Cincinnati: Preview, prediction, TV schedule
Wichita State looks to clinch a share of the American title in their inaugural season, while Cincinnati aims to take the whole thing.
TV Schedule: Sunday, March 4, 12:00 p.m. ET, CBS
Location: Charles Koch Arena, Wichita, Kansas
The Wichita State Shockers largely met expectations during their first season in the American. The one time they went above and beyond, it resulted in a signature victory at the very opponent they face in their regular season closer.
February 18th wasn’t all that long ago. Cincinnati lost on their home court that day, ending the nation’s longest home winning streak. Landry Shamet scored 19 points for the Shockers in the convincing road victory.
That win was part of a winning streak the Shockers have shown no signs of slowing. Wichita State has now won seven straight, although the last five have all been by seven points or less. In other words, opportunity to take them down is ripe.
There’s no better contender to stop the streak in the AAC than the Bearcats. Cincinnati already clinched a share of the conference crown, with losses to Wichita State and Houston serving as the only blemishes on their record.
The Bearcats operate one of the most lethal defenses in all of college basketball, surrendering just 57.2 points per game. In the game against the Shockers, however, they gave up 76, almost 20 more than their average.
Wichita State wants to play an offense-heavy game on Sunday. Cincinnati wants to play a defense-heavy game. The teams’ countering strengths are what makes their inevitable clash in the AAC Tournament Championship Game so exciting..
Here’s the statistic this game pivots on: the No. 11 Shockers are 2-1 against ranked teams this season; the No. 10 Bearcats, however, are 0-3 against them.
Cincinnati could be destined to learn a hard lesson about facing high-caliber opponents in the NCAA Tournament. They’ll be reminded of that possibility in Wichita this week.
Prediction: Wichita State 71, Cincinnati 65