Scouting report: Cincinnati Bearcats, Dayton Flyers renew rivalry in Hoops Classic

Announced in mid-July, the Hoops Classic Saturday night at Heritage Bank Arena will feature the first meeting between the University of Cincinnati Bearcats and Dayton Flyers in over 13 years.

The two former rivals last played Nov. 27, 2010, in the same facility (then U.S. Bank Arena) with Mick Cronin's Bearcats defeating the Flyers 68-34 behind 20 points by Dion Dixon. That win avenged a defeat the previous March when Dayton's NIT championship team came into Fifth Third Arena and downed the Bearcats 81-66 in a second-round game. The Flyers went on to win the tournament at Madison Square Garden over North Carolina.

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"I'm excited about the game," Dayton coach Anthony Grant said. "It's good for both fan bases and will be really good for our team. We'll get our guys as prepared as we can. I think the guys are in a good rhythm of what they need to do and how they need to do it."

Dayton has only two losses, both coming last month. They fell at Northwestern 71-66 and lost to Houston 69-55 in the Charleston Classic. In that same tournament, the Flyers defeated LSU and St. John's before taking on the Big 12 Cougars.

3 keys to UC downing Dayton

1. Fan support most welcome

At last check, Dayton fans had the lead in ticket sales as the school has always had a large, knowledgeable basketball fan base. There's a reason they host the NCAA First Four. UC coach Wes Miller has had to ask his fans to buy tickets as this game is separate from the Bearcat season ticket package. Should you feel so inclined, here is the link to tickets at Heritage Bank Center.

2. Hunker down on DaRon Holmes

The 6-foot-10 junior has been in double figures in all but two games and surpassed the 1,000-point mark as a sophomore. He had 17 rebounds in his last game at Troy, but that might be tough to match with UC's post depth.

3. Adjust to a different gym

Thus far, UC has played seven of its nine games at Fifth Third Arena. In Howard's small gym in Washington D.C., the Bearcats needed overtime to beat the Bison 86-81. At Xavier's Cintas Center, they briefly had a lead but lost a fifth straight Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout 84-79. Heritage Bank Arena is considered neutral, so whatever elements that need to be overcome will be faced by both squads.

Dayton lost to Northwestern in Evanston, played three holiday games in Charleston, South Carolina and beat SMU in Dallas 65-63. Their other four have been at UD Arena.

"This team has the right stuff internally," UC coach Wes Miller said. "This team will be good on the road. But, we've got to figure out how to do that Saturday. It'll be a test for us."

Cincinnati vs. Dayton

Tip: 7 p.m. Saturday, Heritage Bank Center (17,556)

TV/Radio: ESPN+/700WLW

Series: UC leads 44-16

Dayton Flyers scouting report

Record: 7-2

Coach: Anthony Grant (seventh season, 131-66)

Offense: 71.3 ppg

Defense: 64.8 ppg

Projected lineup

(Position, Height, Stats)

Kobe Elvis (G, 6'2", 9.1 ppg)

DaRon Holmes II (F, 6'10", 16.3 ppg)

Javon Bennett (G, 5'10", 7.2 ppg)

Nate Santos (F, 6'7", 12.8 ppg)

Enoch Cheeks (G, 6'3", 6.3 ppg)

Cincinnati Bearcats scouting report

Record: 8-1

Coach: Wes Miller (third season, 49-29, overall 234-164)

Offense: 86.1 ppg

Defense: 65.8 ppg

Projected lineup

(Position, Height, Stats)

Viktor Lakhin (F, 6'11", 14.7 ppg)

Day Day Thomas (G, 6', 11.3 ppg)

John Newman III (F, 6'5", 10.8 ppg)

Aziz Bandaogo (C, 7', 9.0 ppg)

C.J. Fredrick (G, 6'3", 8.0 ppg)

Players to watch

Dayton's Daron Holmes II is coming off a 23-point, 17-rebound effort vs. Troy. He is on the preseason Naismith, Wooden and Karl Malone award lists and started all 34 games last year for Coach Grant. Holmes was the Atlantic-10 Most Outstanding Player in the tournament and was in the NBA Combine before returning to Dayton.

Holmes will be an interesting match-up for Cincinnati's bigs who cleaned the boards effectively in their last game vs. Bryant. Bandaogo had 12 points, 17 rebounds and four blocks, while Lakhin is UC's top scorer for the season and added 12 rebounds in the Bryant win. A mystery may be the availability of 6-11 Temple transfer Jamille Reynolds who has been cleared for the court by way of a temporary restraining order against the NCAA involving the eligibility of two-time transfers.

A good day to call 2

Playing the part of Ernie "Let's Play Two" Banks Saturday is Dan Hoard who will call the Bengals vs. Vikings game at Paycor Stadium, then walk through The Banks for UC's radio broadcast. On ESPN+ Cincinnati native and Amelia grad Eric Rothman calls the Bearcats and Flyers.

Rankings

NCAA NET: UC is at No. 25, Dayton No. 45

KenPom.com: UC is No. 26, Dayton No. 56

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: UC Bearcats, UD Flyers battle in Hoops Classic at Heritage Bank Arena