MJ Collins and Tyler Tejada scored 13 apiece to lead Cincinnati to its first win under their new head coach, 79-53, over American Monday night in Cincinnati in the season opener for both programs.
In his first regular-season game as head coach in Cincinnati, Jerrod Calhoun used 13 players in the first half, looking for a combination to gain command over their foe from the Patriot League. As a result, Cincinnati held a commanding 41-15 advantage in bench scoring.
The bigger, more athletic Cincinnati (1-0) dominated the glass, out-rebounding American, 48-32, outscoring American in the paint, 40-14, while also collecting 15 steals.
Madden Collins scored 14 of his game-high 20 points in the first half while Julen Iturbe added 10 for the Eagles (0-1), who open with road games at Cincinnati of the Big 12 and Clemson of the ACC.
American opened the second half ice cold, missing 16 of their first 20 shots and all 11 3-point shots in the second 20 minutes. With the game tied, 37-37, Cincinnati went on a 12-0 run to pull away from the preseason favorite to capture the Patriot League title. Another 11-0 surge gave Cincinnati a 62-41 advantage with just over seven minutes left.
Cincinnati lost starting forward Jayden Hastings to a left shoulder injury on a blocked shot and he did not return after playing just two minutes and 28 seconds.
Collins missed his first five shots and then caught fire, spearheading the American offense with 14 points, including two three-pointers and 6-of-7 from the free throw line. Defensively, the Eagles converted nine Cincinnati turnovers into 12 points, helping American rally from a 32-21 deficit.
American leaned heavily on an efficient outside shooting performance to negate Cincinnati’s athletic advantage, going on a 12-1 run to tie the game, 33-33, with 42 seconds left in the half. Nine different Bearcats scored in the opening half as Cincinnati took a 35-33 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media
