Keys to victory for Cincinnati Bearcats vs. West Virginia in Big 12 tournament

University of Cincinnati Bearcats basketball and West Virginia will have a third and deciding game, Tuesday afternoon in the Phillips 66 Big 12 tournament in Kansas City.

The Bearcats and Mountaineers will tip off approximately 73 hours after meeting for UC's Senior Day Saturday. That one ended in a 92-56 Bearcat blowout, unlike UC's Jan. 31 69-65 loss to WVU in Morgantown.

Should the Bearcats prevail, a possible path to a semifinal would pit them against No. 6 seed Kansas Wednesday night and possibly No. 3 seed Baylor Thursday night.

First things first. UC coach Wes Miller understands the Mountaineers, who own Big 12 wins over Kansas, Texas, UCF and the Bearcats can be dangerous.

"They beat some really good teams," Miller said. "They'll be a heck of a lot better when we see them on a neutral floor in Kansas City. We've got to regroup and get ready to play a team that's already beat us this year and been able to play with anybody when they're playing well."

3 keys to getting by West Virginia in Round 1

1. Again, stop Jesse Edwards

The 6-11 grad student could be playing his last game which may be extra motivation. UC held him to eight points and four rebounds Saturday, after allowing him a dominant 25-point, 10-rebound effort in the loss at Morgantown. Prior to the Bearcats, West Virginia lost to TCU, but Edwards delivered 36 points and 13 rebounds. With the status of Viktor Lakhin still up in the air, Aziz Bandaogo and Jamille Reynolds will have to make a similar effort in the paint. In Saturday's win they combined for 22 points on 10-for-10 shooting, 10 rebounds and two blocks.

"He (Edwards) is a terrific player and Aziz and Jamille did a nice job in the individual match-up, but our guys did a nice job of trying to make things difficult to get him the ball," Miller said. "It wasn't his best game too. He's one of the best bigs in all of college basketball. I was pleased with our guys attention to detail on how we were going to defend him and the job they did collectively."

2. Get and convert free throws

The Bearcats shot 16 free throws to West Virginia's 10 in their 36-point victory. However, in their previous two games, the opponents (Oklahoma and Kansas State) shot 59 from the stripe to UC's 19. In the West Virginia defeat in January, the Mountaineers got to the line 28 times to UC's eight.

3. Find the 2nd gear again

After allowing multiple leads to slip this season in the Big 12, the Bearcats expanded a 7-point halftime lead to their second-largest victory of the year by 36 points. The momentum was contagious, but most of the 11,914 at Fifth Third Arena were red-clad Bearcat fans. Kansas City's T-Mobile Center seats 18,972 at capacity, the biggest arena UC's played in since their visit to Provo's Marriott Center Jan. 6 to play BYU.

"I think of it as a one-game tournament," Miller said. "They don't let you go to a second day if you don't take care of business on the first."

Cincinnati vs. West Virginia

Tip: 2 p.m. Central/3 p.m. Eastern (T-Mobile Center, 18,972)

TV/Radio: Big12Now/ESPN+/700WLW

Series: Tied 11-11

West Virginia Mountaineers scouting report

Record: 9-22 (Big 12 4-14)

Coach: Josh Eilert (Interim, first season, 9-22)

Offense: 69.3 ppg

Defense: 76. 4 ppg

Projected lineup

(Position, Height, Stats)

Quinn Slazinski (F, 6'9", 12.2 ppg)

Jesse Edwards (C, 6'11', 15.0 ppg)

Kobe Johnson ((G, 6'3", 6.0 ppg)

Kerr Kriisa (G, 6'3", 11.0 ppg)

RaeQuan Battle (G, 6'5", 16.2 ppg)

Cincinnati Bearcats scouting report

Record: 18-13 (7-11 Big 12)

Coach: Wes Miller (third season, 59-41)

Offense: 74.8 ppg

Defense: 67.8 ppg

Projected lineup

(Position, Height, Stats)

Dan Skillings Jr, (F, 6'6", 12.1 ppg)

Day Day Thomas (G, 6', 10.2 ppg)

John Newman III (F, 6'5", 9.8 ppg)

Simas Lukošius (G, 6'8", 10.2 ppg)

Aziz Bandaogo (C, 7', 7.2 ppg)

Players to watch

While Edwards hurt UC in January, RaeQuan Battle is their top scorer. Like Edwards, UC held him to single digits Saturday with nine points on 4-of-10 from the field. Noah Farrakhan was their biggest threat with 12 points including a pair of treys. Kerr Kriisa at guard is also a 43% marksman from the arc.

Dan Skillings Jr. had another active game for the Bearcats against WVU with 17 points and a pair of blocks. Bandaogo and Reynolds will be big factors in defending Edwards.

Ranking

NCAA NET: UC is No. 41, West Virginia No. 158

KenPom.com: UC is No. 41, West Virginia No. 142

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bearcats vs West Virginia Mountaineers in Big 12 tournament