2021–22 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team

The 2021–22 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team represented the University of Cincinnati in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bearcats were led by first-year head coach Wes Miller. The team played their home games at Fifth Third Arena as members of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season 18–15, 7–11 in AAC play to finish in seventh place.

2021–22 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball
Conference	American Athletic Conference
Record	18–15 (7–11 American)
Head coach	Wes Miller (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Andre Morgan (1st season) Chad Dollar (1st season) Mike Roberts (1st season)
Home arena	Fifth Third Arena
Seasons ← 2020–21 2022–23 →

2021–22 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 15 Houston †	15	–	3		.833			32	–	6		.842
SMU	13	–	4		.765			24	–	9		.727
Memphis	13	–	5		.722			22	–	11		.667
Temple	10	–	7		.588			17	–	12		.586
Tulane	10	–	8		.556			14	–	15		.483
UCF	9	–	9		.500			18	–	12		.600
Wichita State	6	–	9		.400			15	–	13		.536
Cincinnati	7	–	11		.389			18	–	15		.545
East Carolina	6	–	11		.353			15	–	15		.500
Tulsa	4	–	14		.222			11	–	20		.355
South Florida	3	–	15		.167			8	–	23		.258
† 2022 AAC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Bearcats finished the 2019–20 season 12–11, 8–6 in AAC play to finish in fifth place. They defeated SMU and Wichita State in the AAC tournament before losing to Houston in the championship game.^[1] The season was the first time since 2010 that the Bearcats did not make the NCAA tournament.

On April 3, 2021, the school placed head coach John Brannen on paid leave pending an investigation after six Bearcats players decided to transfer following the season.^[2] A week later, the school fired Brannen following an investigation into his conduct.^[3][4] On April 14, the school named UNC Greensboro head coach Wes Miller the team's new head coach.^[5][6]

Offseason

Two days after the conference tournament championship, the Bearcats saw six players enter the transfer portal.^[7] On March 26, Athletic Director John Cunningham announced the university would begin investigating allegations against the program.^[8] On April 3, it was announced that head coach John Brannen was placed on indefinite leave.^[9] On April 9, the school announced Brannen had been relieved of his duties effective immediately along with assistants Jayson Gee and Sean Dwyer. Tim Morris was announced as the interim head coach.^[10] In the next few days, both Mike Saunders Jr.^[11] and Mason Madsen^[12] withdrew from the transfer portal after Miller's hiring.

Departures

Cincinnati Departing Players

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes[a]
Zach Harvey	1	G	6'5"	195	Sophomore	Topeka, KS	Transferred to UCSB[13]
Keith Williams	2	G	6'5"	215	Senior	Brooklyn, NY	Graduated; transferred[14] to Western Kentucky[15]
Tari Eason	13	F	6'8"	215	Freshman	Seattle, WA	Transferred to LSU[16]
Mamoudou Diarra	20	F	6'9"	225	Junior	Bamako, Mali	Graduated; transferred to Tennessee Tech[17]
Rapolas Ivanauskas	25	F	6'10"	235	Graduate Student	Barrington, IL	Left team (mid-season)[18]
Chris Vogt	33	C	7'1"	260	Senior	Mayfield, KY	Graduated; transferred to Wisconsin[19]
Adam Cook	44	F	6'6"	180	Senior	Marysville, OH	Walk–on; graduated
Gabe Madsen	55	G	6'5"	195	Freshman	Rochester, MN	Transferred to Utah[20]

1. Due to COVID-19 issues, the NCAA announced that the 2020–21 season would not be counted against the eligibility of any player in any sport held during the organization's winter season, including basketball. This meant that all players had the option to return for 2021–22.

Incoming transfers

Cincinnati Incoming Transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Abdul Ado	00	F	6'11"	255	Graduate Student	Lagos, Nigeria	Transferred from Mississippi State after graduating. Will have one year of remaining eligibility.[21]
A. J. McGinnis	2	G	6'3"	180	Sophomore	Huntsville, AL	Transferred from UNC Greensboro. Will have four years of remaining eligibility.[22]
John Newman III	15	G	6'5"	205	Senior	Greensboro, NC	Transferred from Clemson. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.[23]
Hayden Koval	25	C	7'1"	220	Graduate Student	Prosper, TX	Transferred from UNC Greensboro after graduating. Will have one year of remaining eligibility.[24]
Jarrett Hensley	32	F	6'8"	205	Sophomore	Merriam, KS	Transferred from UNC Greensboro. Will have four years of remaining eligibility.[25]
Ody Oguama	33	F	6'9"	225	Junior	Raleigh, NC	Transferred from Wake Forest. Will have three years of remaining eligibility.[26]

Recruiting classes

2021 recruiting class

There was no 2021 recruiting class.

2022 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2020 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Sage Tolentino C	Honolulu, HI	Hamilton High School (OH)	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Jul 15, 2021
	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 80
Daniel Skillings SG	Philadelphia, PA	Roman Catholic High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Sep 23, 2021
	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 82
Josh Reed SF	Atlanta, GA	Pace Academy	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Oct 1, 2021
	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 79
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Cincinnati 2022 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021. "2022 Cincinnati Bearcats Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021. "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.

Preseason

AAC preseason media poll

On October 13, The American released the preseason Poll and other preseason awards^[27]

Coaches Poll
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Houston	98 (8)
2	Memphis	92 (3)
3	SMU	77
4	Wichita State	76
5	UCF	66
6	Cincinnati	52
7	Tulsa	43
8	Temple	37
T-9	South Florida	25
T-9	Tulane	25
11	East Carolina	14

Preseason Awards

• AAC Preseason All-Conference Second Team - Jeremiah Davenport

Roster

2021–22 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown F 00 Abdul Ado 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 255 lb (116 kg) GS Mississippi State Lagos, Nigeria G 2 A. J. McGinnis  6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So UNC Greensboro Huntsville, Alabama G 3 Mike Saunders Jr. 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Wasatch Academy Indianapolis, Indiana G 5 David DeJulius 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Sr Michigan Detroit, Michigan G 11 CJ Anthony (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Putnam Science Academy Columbus, Ohio G/F 15 John Newman III 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Clemson Greensboro, North Carolina G 23 Mika Adams-Woods 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr New Hampton School Syracuse, New York G 24 Jeremiah Davenport 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Hargrave Military Academy Cincinnati, Ohio C 25 Hayden Koval 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 225 lb (102 kg) GS UNC Greensboro Prosper, Texas F 30 Viktor Lakhin 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 245 lb (111 kg) RS Fr CSKA–2 Anapa, Russia G 31 Sam Martin (W) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 175 lb (79 kg) GS Summit Country Day School Cincinnati, Ohio F 32 Jarrett Hensley 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So UNC Greensboro Merriam, Kansas F 33 Ody Oguama 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Wake Forest Raleigh, North Carolina F 43 Rob Banks  6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Gould Academy Bracknell, England G 45 Mason Madsen 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Mayo High School Rochester, Minnesota	Head coach Wes Miller (North Carolina) Assistant coach(es) Andre Morgan (North Georgia) Mike Roberts (Indiana) Chad Dollar (South Florida) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster Last update: July 15, 2021

Schedule and results

The Bearcats game vs Texas Southern scheduled for December 18, 2021 was canceled due to COVID-19 issues within the Tigers program.^[28] The Bearcats replaced the Texas Southern game with a game against Division II Ashland.^[29]

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 9, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Evansville	W 65–43	1–0	11 – Davenport	8 – Davenport	7 – DeJulius	Fifth Third Arena (10,024) Cincinnati, OH
November 13, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Georgia	W 73–68	2–0	11 – Tied	7 – Tied	5 – Adams-Woods	Fifth Third Arena (10,672) Cincinnati, OH
November 16, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Alabama A&M	W 89–66	3–0	21 – DeJulius	8 – Oguama	5 – Tied	Fifth Third Arena (9,816) Cincinnati, OH
November 18, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Presbyterian	W 79–45	4–0	16 –  Davenport	6 –  Adams-Woods	5 –  Madsen	Fifth Third Arena (9,749) Cincinnati, OH
November 22, 2021* 6:30 p.m., ESPNews		vs. No. 14 Illinois Hall of Fame Classic semifinals	W 71–51	5–0	20 – Saunders	8 – Lakhin	2 – Tied	T-Mobile Center  Kansas City, MO
November 23, 2021* 9:30 p.m., ESPN2		vs. No. 13 Arkansas Hall of Fame Classic Championship	L 67–73	5–1	24 – DeJulius	10 – Oguama	5 – Saunders	T-Mobile Center  Kansas City, MO
November 27, 2021* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Monmouth	L 59–61	5–2	13 – DeJulius	6 – Oguama	5 – Adams-Woods	Fifth Third Arena (8,262) Cincinnati, OH
December 1, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Miami (OH)	W 59–58	6–2	14 – Tied	11 – Ado	5 – Adams-Woods	Millett Hall (7,285) Oxford, OH
December 5, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Bryant	W 73–58	7–2	16 – DeJulius	11 – Lakhin	4 – 2 tied	Fifth Third Arena (7,924) Cincinnati, OH
December 11, 2021* 8:30 p.m., FS1		at Xavier Crosstown Shootout	L 63–83	7–3	14 – Newman III	6 – Lakhin	5 – Saunders	Cintas Center (10,707) Cincinnati, OH
December 14, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Florida A&M	W 77–50	8–3	16 – Davenport	8 – Tied	6 – Saunders	Fifth Third Arena (7,701) Cincinnati, OH
December 18, 2021* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+		Ashland	W 71–57	9–3	24 – Dejulius	6 – Newman III	3 – Tied	Fifth Third Arena (7,622) Cincinnati, OH
December 21, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Tennessee Tech	W 76–67	10–3	15 – Saunders	7 – Davenport	4 – Adams-Woods	Fifth Third Arena (10,028) Cincinnati, OH
AAC Regular Season
January 1, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Tulane	L 60–68	10–4 (0–1)	19 – Davenport	10 – Davenport	3 – Tied	Fifth Third Arena (7,922) Cincinnati, OH
January 6, 2022 9:30 p.m., ESPN		SMU	W 77–60	11–4 (1–1)	22 – DeJulius	10 – Oguama	7 – Saunders Jr.	Fifth Third Arena (7,978) Cincinnati, OH
January 9, 2022 3:30 p.m., ABC		at Memphis Rivalry	L 80–87	11–5 (1–2)	21 – Davenport	6 – Davenport	6 – Adams-Woods	FedExForum (14,502) Memphis, TN
January 12, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		East Carolina	W 79–71	12–5 (2–2)	22 – Davenport	6 – Tied	8 – Saunders Jr.	Fifth Third Arena (7,911) Cincinnati, OH
January 16, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN		at Wichita State	W 61–57	13–5 (3–2)	18 – DeJulius	6 – Adams-Woods	3 – Davenport	Charles Koch Arena (8,439) Wichita, KS
January 20, 2022 9:00 p.m., ESPNU		Tulsa	W 90–69	14–5 (4–2)	24 – Davenport	7 – Oguama	7 – Adams-Woods	Fifth Third Arena (9,033) Cincinnati, OH
January 25, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Temple	L 58–61	14–6 (4–3)	15 – DeJulius	9 – Newman III	3 – Saunders Jr.	Liacouras Center (4,752) Philadelphia, PA
January 30, 2022 12:00 p.m., ESPNU		at East Carolina	W 60–59	15–6 (5–3)	21 – Adams-Woods	6 – Ado	2 – Tied	Williams Arena (3,834) Greenville, NC
February 6, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN2		No. 6 Houston	L 58–80	15–7 (5–4)	25 – DeJulius	5 – Oguama	4 – Saunders	Fifth Third Arena (11,742) Cincinnati, OH
February 9, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at South Florida	W 70–59	16–7 (6–4)	24 – DeJulius	8 – Ado	3 – Adams-Woods	Yuengling Center (2,011) Tampa, FL
February 12, 2022 8:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Tulsa	L 77–83	16–8 (6–5)	23 – DeJulius	9 – Davenport	3 – DeJulius	Reynolds Center (3,405) Tulsa, OK
February 15, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Memphis Previously scheduled for Feb. 3rd	L 74–81	16–9 (6–6)	20 – Davenport	11 – Davenport	4 – DeJulius	Fifth Third Arena (12,012) Cincinnati, OH
February 17, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN2		Wichita State	W 85–76	17–9 (7–6)	17 – DeJulius	6 – Adams-Woods	6 – DeJulius	Fifth Third Arena (9,655) Cincinnati, OH
February 20, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN2		Temple	L 71–75	17–10 (7–7)	24 – Davenport	6 – Newman III	5 – Adams-Woods	Fifth Third Arena (9,122) Cincinnati, OH
February 23, 2022 9:00 p.m., ESPNU		at UCF	L 61–75	17–11 (7–8)	16 – DeJulius	12 – Davenport	4 – Newman III	Addition Financial Arena (5,102) Orlando, FL
February 26, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		South Florida	L 54–56	17–12 (7–9)	11 – Newman III	8 – Newman III	4 – DeJulius	Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
March 1, 2022 9:00 p.m., ESPNU		at No. 14 Houston Previously scheduled for Dec. 28th	L 53–71	17–13 (7–10)	14 – Saunders	7 – Newman III	4 – DeJulius	Fertitta Center (7,598) Houston, TX
March 3, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPNU		at SMU	L 71–76	17–14 (7–11)	21 – DeJulius	7 – Davenport	4 – DeJulius	Moody Coliseum (4,261) University Park, TX
AAC Tournament
March 10, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPNU	(8)	vs. (9) East Carolina First round	W 74–63	18–14	22 – DeJulius	8 – Newman III	5 – Newman III	Dickies Arena  Fort Worth, TX
March 11, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN2	(8)	vs. (1) No. 18 Houston Quarterfinals	L 56–69	18–15	13 – Tied	5 – Tied	4 – Tied	Dickies Arena  Fort Worth, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

Source^[30][31]

Awards and honors

American Athletic Conference honors

All-AAC Third Team

• David DeJulius

References

1. "UC Loses to Houston, 91-54, will not play in NCAA Tournament for first time since 2010". The Cincinnati Enquirer. March 14, 2021. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
2. "Cincinnati coach Brannen on leave amid inquiry". ESPN.com. April 3, 2021. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
3. "Cincy fires Brannen after investigation of program". ESPN.com. April 9, 2021. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
4. Jackson, Wilton. "Cincinnati Fires Men's Basketball Coach John Brannen". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
5. "Cincinnati hires Wes Miller as new hoops coach". ESPN.com. April 15, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
6. "Wes Miller Named Men's Basketball Head Coach". GoBearcats.com. University of Cincinnati Athletics. April 14, 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
7. Williams, Justin (March 18, 2021). "The rift with Cincinnati Bearcats coach John Brannen that led to a mass exodus of basketball players". The Athletic.
8. "UC reviewing allegations against men's basketball program after 6 players enter transfer portal". wlwt.com. WLWT. March 26, 2021.
9. "Cincinnati men's basketball coach John Brannen on leave amid investigation". espn.com. ESPN. April 3, 2021.
10. "Men's Basketball Coaching Change Announced". GoBearcats.com. sidearmsports. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
11. Saunders Jr., Mike [@icemikeg3] (April 16, 2021). "#RunItBack" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
12. Madson, Mason [@masmadsen] (April 17, 2021). "Ready to finish what I started, let's get it! #Bearcat4L" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
13. Harvey, Zach [@zachxharvey] (April 9, 2021). "Back to the west side #Committed" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
14. Goodman, Jeff [@GoodmanHoops] (June 29, 2021). "Cincinnati's Keith Williams has entered the transfer portal, the portal told @Stadium" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
15. "Hilltoppers Add Cincinnati Transfer Keith Williams". wkusports.com. WKU Athletics. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
16. Eason, Tari [@TAR13ASON] (April 20, 2021). "For Grandpa #Bootup" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
17. @TTU_Basketball (April 28, 2021). "Welcome to Cookeville @the_dou20. Originally from Bamako, Mali...Mamoudou comes to Tech via transfer from the University of Cincinnati. #WingsUp" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
18. Williams, Justin [@Williams_Justin] (December 30, 2020). "NEWS: #Bearcats head coach John Brannen confirms the roster rumors on his radio show. Junior forward Mamoudou Diarra is back with the program after a brief opt out. Senior graduate transfer Rapolas Ivanauskas is no longer with the team and has elected to opt out this season" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
19. "Wisconsin basketball recruiting: UW lands grad transfer from Cincinnati". SB Nation. May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
20. Madsen, Gabe [@GabeMadsen53] (April 2, 2021). "#GoUtes" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
21. Williams, Justin [@Williams_Justin] (May 18, 2021). "#Bearcats MBB lands a transfer commit from Miss St. big man Abdul Ado. The 6-foot-11, 255-pound center is a grad transfer with one year of eligibility" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
22. McGinnis, A.J. [@TheAJM2] (April 27, 2021). "Let's run it back #GoBearcats" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
23. Newman III, John [@_JayRock15] (April 20, 2021). "LETS GET IT CINCY" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
24. Koval, Hayden [@Hayden_Koval] (April 22, 2021). "Slight change of plans! #GoBearcats" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
25. Hensley, Jarrett [@_jarretthensley] (April 23, 2021). "Thank you UNCG #Gobearcats" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
26. Oguama, Ody [@odyoguama] (May 12, 2021). "The Next Chapter" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
27. "Houston Selected as 2021-22 American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Favorite". theAmerican.org. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
28. Jenkins, Keith. "UC home game against Texas Southern canceled due to COVID-19 issues within TSU program". Cincinnati.com. Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
29. "Schedule Update: MBB to Host Ashland Saturday at 1 p.m." GoBearcats.com. University of Cincinnati Athletics. December 17, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
30. "2021–22 Men's Basketball Schedule". gobearcats.com. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
31. "2021-22 Cincinnati Bearcats Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 9, 2022.