[3:00 PM] #21 Rhode Island v. #24 Cincinnati

Who will WIN this matchup?

#21 Rhode Island Rams (3-0)

#24 Cincinnati Bearcats (2-0)

 

• The line for this game is Cincinnati by 2 points.

• Top-ranked Duke is looming as a potential opponent for the winner of Saturday’s matchup between No. 22 Rhode Island and No. 25 Cincinnati in the Hall of Fame Tip Off Tournament at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT. Both teams enter the contest unbeaten with each of them picking up two victories in on-campus games tied to the event, which has the Blue Devils playing Penn State in the other semifinal.

• Jared Terrell scored 18 points and fellow junior E.C. Matthews added 17 against the Bears to leave his scoring average at an even 20 points. Senior Hassan Martin fell just shy of his third straight double-double (12 points, eight rebounds) but added six blocked shots and was 6-of-7 from the floor. Martin has made 14-of-18 shots overall to lead the Rams, who entered Friday ranked 19th in the country in shooting (53.3 percent).

• The Bearcats are hitting 25.6 percent of their 3-point tries and 62.5 percent from the free-throw line, numbers they will need to improve upon against opponents such as Rhode Island and – potentially – Duke. Evans is one of the few players succeeding in both categories (46.2 percent, 80 percent) as he continues to build upon a solid finish to his freshman campaign, which included a career-high 26 points in Cincinnati’s loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Junior forward Kyle Washington has 29 points and 15 rebounds in 45 minutes on the young season.

• Martin has 15 blocked shots through the first three games, equaling Cincinnati’s total in its two contests.

• Bearcats G Troy Caupain leads his team in assists (11) and steals (six) and needs 42 points to become the 50th player in program history with 1,000 for his career.

• Cincinnati has won the only two prior meetings, the last coming on Nov. 19, 1998

 

StreakSmarts Pick: Cincinnati Bearcats

Confidence: 5/10

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