Returning their top three scorers from last year, Cincinnati is looking to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019. Competing in a conference that tied for the most teams in the NCAA Tournament with eight, the Bearcats held their own in losing just one Big 12 game by double-digits. The Bearcats signed three players in the transfer portal this offseason, including two experienced forwards and a guard.
G Dan Skillings Jr. (12.9 ppg).
became the first Bearcats player to lead the team in total points and rebounds since Yancy Gates in 2010-11. G/F Simas Lukosius (11.8 ppg).
In his first season in Cincinnati, after transferring from Butler, Lukosius finished second on the team in scoring and total assists. G Day Day Thomas (10.3 ppg) made an immediate impact in his first season with the Bearcats, leading the team with 116 assists and 61 steals.
While the Bearcats return their top three scorers and six of their top eight scorers, Cincinnati will have to replace two key players from last year’s team. John Newman III, a defensive standout, and Viktor Lahkin, an efficient scorer in the front court. The Bearcats landed three potentially high-impact transfers in F Dillon Mitchell (Texas), F Arrington Page (USC) and G Connor Hickman (Bradley).
Mitchell was second in the Big 12 with 7.5 rebounds last year and had eight double-doubles, while Hickman averaged 14.5 points while shooting 40.
2% from three-point range. Hickman scored nearly 1,000 points in three seasons at .
