Recap: Cincinnati 91 Oklahoma State 68
The Cincinnati Bearcats responded to Tuesday's loss at Texas Tech with a dominant performance Saturday afternoon, rolling past the Oklahoma State Cowboys 91-68. With the win, Cincinnati improves to 16-13 overall and 8-8 in Big 12 play, positioning itself with momentum heading into the final two regular-season games.
After the game, head coach Wes Miller emphasized how difficult it is to separate in conference play.
“It's hard to win Big 12 games. That's a very good team. And so to win with that kind of a margin, you obviously feel good about that.”
(Photo: Taylor Keeton / Bearcatsportshub)
Game Recap
Cincinnati wasted no time setting the tone. After Oklahoma State briefly grabbed a 2-1 lead just 18 seconds into the game — its only lead of the afternoon — the Bearcats seized control for good.
Day Day Thomas jumpstarted the early surge with a three-pointer at the 18:34 mark to give Cincinnati a 6-2 advantage. Moments later, Moustapha Thiam drilled a three of his own, and Thomas continued attacking in transition as the Bearcats pushed the margin to eight.
Midway through the first half, Cincinnati’s perimeter shooting ignited. Back-to-back triples from Jizzle James stretched the lead to 26-14, and Thiam’s steady presence inside helped extend the margin to 14 with just over 10 minutes remaining.
(Photo: Taylor Keeton / Bearcatsportshub)
Miller noted the team’s focus after the Texas Tech loss centered on defensive intensity and rebounding.
“I thought our defensive energy and our rebounding effort was improved," Miller said. "That was the focus the last couple days, was trying to see if we could ramp that back up. We weren't pleased with some of the things in the Texas Tech game, especially with the rebounding and some of the errors defensively. I thought it was significantly better tonight in stretches, so I was pleased with that.”
The Bearcats’ defensive pressure fueled offense throughout the half. After Oklahoma State cut the deficit to 30-19 at the free-throw line, Cincinnati responded with a 10-3 push highlighted by free throws from Thomas and a dunk from Thiam. By the 4:00 mark, a three-pointer from Jalen Celestine pushed the lead to 43-25.
Though the Cowboys briefly trimmed the margin to 13 late in the half, Cincinnati closed strong. A pair of interior finishes by Baba Miller and a thunderous dunk from Thiam in the closing seconds sent the Bearcats into halftime with a commanding 51-33 lead.
(Photo: Taylor Keeton / Bearcatsportshub)
The second half followed a similar script.
James opened the period with a fastbreak three to stretch the lead to 21. Thomas then caught fire from deep, knocking down three second-half triples — including back-to-back daggers around the 15-minute mark — to push the advantage to 28.
Cincinnati’s largest lead came at the 8:22 mark of the second half when Thomas buried another three-pointer to make it 81-49, a 32-point cushion. From there, the Bearcats maintained control, mixing inside finishes from Thiam and Miller with balanced ball movement.
Oklahoma State never mounted a serious threat. Though Vyctorius Miller scored 15 to lead the Cowboys and Jordan Curry went a perfect 9-for-9 from the free-throw line, Cincinnati’s offensive balance and rebounding dominance kept the outcome firmly in hand.
A fastbreak dunk by Shon Abaev with 1:49 remaining capped Cincinnati’s final field goal, and the Bearcats closed out the 23-point victory without drama.
Key Takeaways
Day Day Thomas’ perimeter explosion
Thomas led all scorers with 26 points, shooting an efficient 7-of-12 from the field and an impressive 7-of-11 from three-point range. His shot-making in both halves halted every Oklahoma State attempt to chip away at the lead. When the Cowboys showed signs of life, Thomas answered.
Thomas, who surpassed 1,000 career points in the win, kept the milestone in perspective.
“I know I was close, but I wasn't too much worrying about it. I was just trying to get a win for real. So it's a blessing to reach 1K, especially with my story. So that's kind of big for me.”
Miller reflected on Thomas’ journey.
“Day's in Bishopville, South Carolina, a handful of years ago, and the only scholarship offer he had was Queens College. Not knocking Queens College, because they're a really good program for those who don't know, but that was the only scholarship offer he had and he ends up in junior college. And so for a guy coming from junior college to score a thousand points playing in the Big 12, that is something I'm proud of him.”
On Thomas’ recent shooting surge, the senior credited confidence and movement.
“No, I'm just shooting with confidence and my teammates finding me. I'm just trying to move without the ball because I know a lot of people are worried about me doing baseline runners and coming off screens. So just shooting with confidence and my teammates finding me.”
Thiam’s dominance inside
(Photo: Taylor Keeton / Bearcatsportshub)
Thiam was a force in the paint, finishing with 24 points and 15 rebounds for a commanding double-double. He shot 10-of-18 from the field and controlled the glass on both ends. His activity helped Cincinnati secure a 43-32 rebounding advantage and a decisive 24-7 edge in second-chance points.
Thiam credited the staff and his teammates for his recent stretch of three straight 20-point games.
“It feels good. I'm just giving credit to my coach and the staff and my teammates. They're getting me involved in the basketball play on every play. So I think it's good. I just got to keep working and keep doing what I'm doing.”
Miller pointed to Thiam’s growth as a decision-maker.
“I think the thing is the decision-making when the post double comes. He's scoring it. He's shooting the three better. I know he missed some looks tonight — they were small misses — but he's shooting the three significantly better. He's playing through the box and even the long post better.But when they bring doubles, he's making great decisions. So I think it's not just the scoring. I think it's being able to play through them as a decision-maker, too.”
On handling an increased workload, Thiam kept it simple.
“Just keep working hard every single day. And then the confidence that my coach and my teammates give me. I just got to keep working and doing what I'm doing, and that'll be good.”
Ball movement and efficiency
The Bearcats assisted on 24 of 33 made field goals and committed just eight turnovers. Baba Miller stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, showcasing the unselfishness that fueled the offense.
Miller praised Baba’s versatility.
“He's extremely unique. He's a unique player probably for anybody unless you coach in the NBA, when there's a lot of seven-footers running around in that league with that kind of skill," Miller said. "But as a college coach, it's pretty unique to have somebody that is 7-foot and has that kind of versatility. His passing was good — we noticed it this summer when he was skipping it across the floor — but I thought it's really evolved."
Miller continued.
"I give our staff and Bob a lot of credit. They've embraced some skill development things with him and he's bought into it. His passing and facilitating has been a surprise and it's improved as the year's gone on. It's extremely unique and it's special for sure, and he still can continue to grow there. As good as it is, he can get better. But I looked down and he had eight assists tonight. That's not a surprise for us anymore.”
Cincinnati shot 47 percent from the floor and 41 percent from beyond the arc (14-of-34), overwhelming an Oklahoma State defense that allowed the Bearcats to lead for 39:24 of game time.
Miller added:
“We're doing a better job getting the ball into the post recently. I think we can continue to do that — to play through Moo, play through Baba at times down there. The pick and roll with Moo and Baba has been something that's evolving. That's been fun. And then I think the other stuff has been really steady and our movement's been better. So the offense is continuing to improve, too.”
Defensive control and composure
While Oklahoma State made 17-of-20 from the free-throw line, the Cowboys managed 40.7 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three. Cincinnati also limited transition points and never allowed a sustained run.
On closing the game with reserves and the group’s mindset, Miller said:
“No, I didn't have any of the ‘I want to stay in.’ I think this group's gotten really selfless. It's just about what we got to do to win. Certain nights we've played certain guys more, maybe other guys less. We haven't had any issues with that. I think this group really wants to win. And so again, I feel like there's a really good connection in our locker room and in our huddles.”
Winning the hustle categories
Cincinnati dominated the offensive glass (14 offensive rebounds) and turned 14 Oklahoma State turnovers into 16 points. The Bearcats also took care of the ball, finishing with just eight turnovers.
On the rotation tightening as the season winds down, Miller explained:
“I think we'd like to utilize our depth always. I think that's the best recipe to be consistently great. But I do think that we've found some guys that are in a really good rhythm playing together. So you've seen some extended minutes with those groups. But I can't say this enough — those guys off the bench are really, really important to this team, and they're going to be really important here down the stretch.”
Additional Notes
On Shon Abaev's return to the floor, Miller was encouraged.
“I was pleased. I thought he had a couple really good defensive possessions, and that was the area that early on we were really working to improve. Even in practice the last couple days, he hasn't regressed with the time off.
"I love that he got to the offensive board. I know he stepped out of bounds on the rebound, but we were challenging him there. He missed the weak-side box out, but again, I was pretty pleased."
(Photo: Taylor Keeton / Bearcatsportshub)
"His decision-making is key, and we're a much better offensive team than earlier in the year. We need him to facilitate and make plays. I thought he did a really nice job of that. So good start, and I think he can kind of grow back into the rotation.”
On Tyler McKinley's status moving forward, after missing another game due to issues with his knee:
“We've dealt with that kind of stuff all year long. And Tyler — you just feel for him as a kid. He's had so many setbacks, so he's a little more prepared now mentally and physically to deal with it. I think early in the year you could see the toll it was taking on him. You could look at him in practice and he couldn't go that day because the knee wasn't right. You could just see he was beat up. I think he's tougher mentally with what he's dealt with. But I have no idea for Tuesday. He was not able to practice yesterday.”
Final Thoughts
Saturday’s performance was exactly what Cincinnati needed at this stage of the season — balanced scoring, dominant rebounding, disciplined defense and hot perimeter shooting. With two games remaining in the regular season, the Bearcats appear to be finding rhythm at the right time, having won five of their previous six, including three 20-point wins and a 16-point victory at Kansas.
If Thomas continues shooting at this level and Thiam maintains his interior presence, Cincinnati will be a difficult matchup down the stretch of Big 12 play.
Next up is BYU on Tuesday night for senior night to close the season at Fifth Third Arena before traveling to TCU for the regular season finale.
Thomas isn’t looking too far ahead.
“No. I'm just taking it one game at a time right now and just trying to finish the season off strong.”