Bearcats Start AAC Play with 93-61 Win Over Tulane

In their American Athletic Conference opener, the defending league champion Cincinnati Bearcats showed no mercy to the Tulane Green Wave, routing them 93-61 at Fifth Third Arena on Wednesday night.

Jarron Cumberland led the charge, as he often does, scoring 22 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including a 3-for-5 showing from beyond the arc, while tallying a game-high seven rebounds and five assists. The Bearcats (12-2, 1-0 AAC) also got 18 points and five assists from Justin Jenifer and 17 points from Cane Broome, who started for the first time since Nov. 16. The two point guards worked seamlessly together in the starting lineup, shooting a combined 12-of-14 from the field to go with eight assists and only one turnover.

In the frontcourt, Trevon Scott and Nysier Brooks both had difficult games. Scott hit just 3-of-11 from the floor and Brooks was held scoreless while dealing with foul trouble.

With Broome back in the starting lineup, Keith Williams returned to a reserve role. Even though he didn’t have his most efficient offensive game (10 points, 4-of-10 shooting), he added a lot in other areas, especially on defense as he racked up three steals and three blocks. In addition, Rashawn Fredericks drained a trio of threes off the bench to finish with nine points.

The Bearcats limited Tulane to just 36.8 percent shooting, netted 47.8 percent of their own and owned a 19-10 scoring advantage at the free throw line. They will try to extend that kind of success and their current three-game winning streak when they visit East Carolina on Saturday.