Big second half rallies Cincinnati past Evansville 76-58
Evansville Purple Aces vs. Cincinnati Bearcats: Full Highlights
Evansville Purple Aces vs. Cincinnati Bearcats: Full Highlights
CINCINNATI -- — John Newman III scored 16 points to lead a balanced scoring effort and Cincinnati rallied in the second half to defeat Evansville 76-58 on Friday night.
Cincinnati, now 10-0 at home, outscored Evansville 44-18 in the second half, led by Simas Lukosius who scored 12 points on 4-for-6 shooting from 3-point range.
In addition to Newman's 16 points, Lukosius finished with 15, Viktor Lahkin 11, Dan Skillings Jr. 10 and Day Day Thomas 10 for the Bearcats (11-2). Thomas added seven assists, six rebounds and four steals. Lahkin had nine rebounds with four assists.
Yacine Toumi had 17 points and nine rebounds to lead Evansville (10-3). Kenny Strawbridge scored 14 points and Tanner Cuff added 11.
After being outshot 58% to 36% and falling behind 40-32 in the first half, the Bearcats dominated the second half.
Cincinnati held Evansville to 10 points over the first 12 minutes after halftime while scoring 28. The Bearcats led 60-48 with slightly over eight minutes left in the game. Lukosius scored nine points on 3-for-3 3-point shooting and Newman added six in the run. After Toumi hit a jumper to open the second half, the Purple Aces missed their next 13 shots.
Three-pointers from Lukosius and Newman helped put the Bearcats up 67-50 with about five minutes remaining and they led by at least 14 points the rest of the way.
The Bearcats shot 39% for the game and got a boost from a 49-29 advantage in rebounds. They had 18 offensive rebounds, leading to a 17-6 advantage in second-chance points.
Evansville is off to its best start in several seasons, having reached double digits in wins for the first time since 2018-19. Their 10 wins so far are twice as many as last season. The Purple Aces (1-1 Missouri Valley Conference) return to conference play on Wednesday with a road game against Indiana State.
The Bearcats open Big 12 play on Saturday, Jan. 6, when they face BYU on the road.
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Game Information
- Referees:
- Gerry Pollard
- Amy Bonner
- Chance Moore
2024-25 Missouri Valley Conference Standings
| Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drake | 0-0 | - | 6-0 |
| Bradley | 0-0 | - | 6-1 |
| Belmont | 0-0 | - | 4-1 |
| Missouri State | 0-0 | - | 4-2 |
| Murray State | 0-0 | - | 3-2 |
| Northern Iowa | 0-0 | - | 3-2 |
| Valparaiso | 0-0 | - | 3-2 |
| Illinois State | 0-0 | - | 4-3 |
| UIC | 0-0 | - | 4-3 |
| Indiana State | 0-0 | - | 3-3 |
| Evansville | 0-0 | - | 3-4 |
| Southern Illinois | 0-0 | - | 2-4 |
2024-25 Big 12 Conference Standings
| Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| BYU | 0-0 | - | 5-0 |
| Cincinnati | 0-0 | - | 5-0 |
| Kansas | 0-0 | - | 5-0 |
| Arizona State | 0-0 | - | 5-1 |
| Texas Tech | 0-0 | - | 5-1 |
| Colorado | 0-0 | - | 4-1 |
| TCU | 0-0 | - | 4-1 |
| Utah | 0-0 | - | 4-1 |
| Houston | 0-0 | - | 3-1 |
| Iowa State | 0-0 | - | 3-1 |
| West Virginia | 0-0 | - | 3-1 |
| Kansas State | 0-0 | - | 5-2 |
| Baylor | 0-0 | - | 4-2 |
| Oklahoma State | 0-0 | - | 4-2 |
| UCF | 0-0 | - | 4-2 |
| Arizona | 0-0 | - | 2-2 |
Men's College Basketball News