Cincinnati can avenge recent defeat when Utah visits

Field Level Media|published: Mon 10th February, 17:27 2025

Feb 8, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bearcats guard Jizzle James (2) dribbles against the Brigham Young Cougars in the first half at Fifth Third Arena. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

After gaining revenge against one Utah team on Saturday, the Cincinnati Bearcats look to repeat the feat against another Tuesday night when they host Utah in Big 12 play.

Trailing BYU by three points at the half on Saturday, Cincinnati (14-9, 4-8) opened the second half with a 22-2 run and posted an 84-66 win over the Cougars, avenging a 28-point loss just two weeks earlier.

Now the Bearcats try to even things up with the Utes (13-10, 5-7), who overcame 19 turnovers and a 14-0 Cincinnati surge in the second half to record a 69-66 win on Jan. 28 in Salt Lake City.

Jizzle James had a season-high 24 points while Josh Reed added a career-best 12 points off the bench as Cincinnati won its second straight conference game in Saturday's win over BYU. The Bearcats, who have been in the Big 12 since July 2023, have never won three straight conference regular-season games.

Last year, Cincinnati defeated West Virginia in the regular-season finale and then two straight in the Big 12 tournament before falling to Baylor.

Cincinnati coach Wes Miller pointed to Reed's play off the bench and suggested that even better times are ahead for him in the program.

"As I told him in the locker room, it won't be the best game of his career soon because he's not a fluke, he's been improving, and we've always known he was capable of this. It was great to see it happen out there in a big-time college basketball game."

Utah is coming off a 71-62 loss at West Virginia on Saturday. Keanu Dawes led the way with 14 points for Utah, which fell to 1-5 on the road in Big 12 play this season.

"You've got to play well on the road, certainly," Utah coach Craig Smith said. "You've got to eliminate losing. They just made a few more plays than us to come out on top."

Utah's twin brothers Gabe and Mason Madsen return to Cincinnati for the first time since leaving the school by the end of the 2021-22 season.

Mason Madsen averaged 3.9 points per game as a sophomore in 2021-22 for Cincinnati, where his 36.3 percentage from 3-point range led the team. He transferred to Boston College before joining the Utes this season.

Gabe Madsen played two games for the Bearcats in the 2020-21 season before transferring to Utah.

--Field Level Media