Cincinnati Basketball: 3 reasons why the Bearcats will be better than Xavier in 2018-19

By TJ Miller | Sep 4, 2018

NASHVILLE, TN - MARCH 18: Trevor Moore #5 of the Cincinnati Bearcats high fives Jarron Cumberland #34 against the Nevada Wolf Pack during the first half in the second round of the 2018 Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 18, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images) /

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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, KY – FEBRUARY 25: Head coach Mick Cronin of the Cincinnati Bearcats reacts against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane at BB&T Arena on February 25, 2018 in Highland Heights, Kentucky. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

1) Mick Cronin’s consistency

Although it’s fair to claim his teams have drastically underperformed come NCAA tourney time, Cronin’s regular season consistency at Cincinnati has been impressive, to say the least. Here are some of his accomplishments while the head coach at Cincinnati:

8 straight NCAA Tournament appearances (Tied for 5th longest active streak).
Win-Loss record of 133-40 (.769%) since 2013-14 season.
Finished in the top 3 of the AAC each of the last 5 seasons.
Won 61 games the past 2 seasons. Only Jay Wright, Bill Self, and Mark Few have more in that span.

After spending a few years establishing himself at Cincinnati, Cronin simply hasn’t had a bad season the last eight years. A major reason why has been his teams’ success on defense. Cincinnati has ranked inside the top-20 in Adj-D per kenpom every season since 2012. Cronin just flat-out knows how to coach defense.

With this said, there’s no question losing the AAC defensive player of the year Gary Clark will prove a challenge. The versatility of Clark has been a key part of Cincinnati’s defensive dominance the last couple of seasons. But Clark is a testament to what Cronin does best: fusing raw talent and athleticism together with desire and grit to form a hard-nosed defensive unit.

Cronin recruits players with these traits and another Gary Clark type player will emerge. Look for a collection of players to fill that voice in 2018-19.

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