UC's Wes Miller gives early preview for Bearcat men's basketball in Big 12

Since Wes Miller's University of Cincinnati men's basketball team lost an NIT quarterfinal March 22 against Utah Valley, he's added five transfers, two new freshmen and an additional walk-on.

Miller's 23 wins with the Bearcats last season are the most since 2018-19 when Mick Cronin's team won 28. That was also UC's last NCAA appearance. Should the Bearcats get a pair of two-time transfers eligible, they would seem to have a fair shot at getting back on Selection Sunday.

UC basketball schedule: Season opener Nov. 6, Big 12 home opener vs. Texas

Tuesday at Fifth Third Arena, Miller discussed his new squad and updated their dealings with the NCAA on 6-foot-11 Jamille Reynolds and 7-footer Aziz Bandaogo.

Bandaogo previously played for Akron and Utah Valley before UC, with Reynolds playing at UCF and Temple.

"We've submitted waivers to the NCAA on Aziz and Jamille's behalf," Miller said. "We're supporting them through the process and that's about all I think is appropriate to say at this point."

2023-24 Bearcats

Graduate students

CJ Fredrick – The 6-3, 190-pound guard played in 26 games for Kentucky last season with 15 starts averaging 6.1 points. He previously was at Iowa and had a 21-point game vs. UC in 2019 at the Chicago Legends game at the United Center. Fredrick played at Covington Catholic High School and won several awards, including 2018 Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year.

"He's been one of the key players in both programs (Iowa, UK)," Miller said. "He's also sat out and redshirted and fought through injuries. He has a plethora of experience that allows him to be mature and lead."

John Newman III – The 6-5,215-pound wing was injured after one game last season but started 31 of 32 games in his first season with Wes Miller in 2021-22 averaging 6.9 points and 4.2 rebounds.

Landen Long – A 5-11, 185-pound guard, Long averaged 10.9 points per game at Ohio Northern last season.

Seniors

Jamille Reynolds – Reynolds is a 6-11, 275-pound forward who averaged 10.1 points and 5.4 rebounds for Temple. In two games vs. UC he scored 11 and 12 points, respectively.

"I've been really, really impressed with what he's done since the day that he got here," Miller said. "He feels he's in a healthy environment. I want to say he's lost like 45 pounds in three months. There's some possessions in practice where I stop and go, 'Wow!' If he can do that consistently which I believe he's capable of, I believe he's going to turn not just the heads of our fans but he'll turn heads all across basketball."

Aziz Bandaogo – Bandaogo is a 7-foot, 235-pound post player who averaged 11.4 points and 10.5 rebounds for Utah Valley last season. Against UC in the NIT he had 15 points and 12 rebounds.

Redshirt junior

Viktor Lakhin – Lakhin checks in a 6-11 and 240 pounds. He averaged 11.6 points and 7.1 rebounds last season including a 22-point, 10-rebound effort against Memphis.

Juniors

Day Day Thomas – Thomas is a 6-foot, 185-pound guard from Kilgore Community College in Texas. He averaged 19 points, six rebounds, 3.1 assists and was rated the No. 4 junior college transfer by JucoRecruiting.com His real name is DaVeon.

"We really believed in both him and Jizzle (James) in the recruiting process," Miller said. "So far they've been incredibly hardworking and coachable. They're humble, but also confident. We're working on getting them up to speed every day because we know how important that position is in college basketball."

CJ Anthony – Anthony is 6-foot and 190 pounds. The walk-on has appeared in 24 games the last two seasons.

Chase Kirkwood –Kirkwood is a 6-1, 190-pound walk-on guard who played in nine games last season.

Simas Lukoŝius – The 6-8, 225-pound transfer from Butler started in all 32 games for the Bulldogs last season averaging 11.6 points per game, four rebounds and 2.9 assists. He shot 37.8% from the perimeter and 80% at the free-throw line. He had a high game of 28 vs. Villanova.

"His size maybe dictates that he's more of a swing player or forward in his two years at Butler, but he's really good with the ball in his hands," Miller said. "He creates plays for others which is one of the ways I think about a lead guard."

Sophomores

Dan Skillings Jr. –At 6-6 and 215 pounds, Skillings played in 35 of 36 games last season averaging 5.3 points and 3.3 rebounds. He had a 20-point game vs. Temple in the AAC tournament and pulled down a season-high 13 rebounds recording a double-double against Bryant earlier in the season.

"There's things he understands now that he didn't understand as a freshman," Miller said. "That learning curve is not as big and that's allowing him to go play with his natural instincts and gifts that we've all seen flashes of."

Josh Reed – The 6-7, 220-pound guard played in 29 of UC's 36 games. He had a 10-point, nine-rebound effort vs. Bryant and was 10-for-25 on threes.

Redshirt freshman

Sage Tolentino – The tallest on the team at 7-1 and now 240 pounds, Tolentino played eight minutes last season with a four-point, two-rebound effort against Bryant. He qualified for a medical redshirt.

Freshmen

Jizzle James – The 6-1, 195-pound son of NFL Hall of Famer Edgerrin James averaged 20 points, 2.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists with 1.5 steals in high school in Orlando. He shot 56% from the field and chose UC over Florida and Georgia. His real name is Edgerrin James Jr.

Rayvon Griffith – The 6-7, 205-pound guard/forward was ranked the No. 11 small forward by 247Sports.com. He played last season for Arizona Compass. As a junior, he helped Taft to the Division III Ohio state championship and was First Team All-State averaging 19 points, six rebounds and two assists per game.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bearcats basketball coach Wes Miller on first Big 12 season