WICHITA, Kan. — Jacob Evans led the way with 19 points for the 10th ranked Bearcats in a 62-61 victory over the 11th ranked Shockers. This win gave Cincinnati an outright American Athletic Conference title. The loss prevented the Shockers from gaining a shared conference title and the number one seed in the conference tournament.
In the game of the year in the AAC, both teams struggled to score down the stretch of this heavily fought game as the teams combined for 2 made field goals in the final 5 minutes of the game. Wichita State had several chances to win the game, including 3 shots in the final 15 seconds, but they could not find a way to put the ball in the basket.
Standouts from the game were Landry Shamet and Shaq Morris for Wichita State and Jacob Evans and Jarron Cumberland for Cincinnati.
Both teams should walk away feeling confident after this game. For the Bearcats, it proved that they could beat a top team on the road and should boost their seeding come tournament time. And for Wichita State, they competed hard and looked like a high tournament seed, so this loss should not affect their seeding too much, especially if they win the conference tournament.
You can watch both teams play their first game in the AAC Tournament on Friday.