Overall 2010 season

The overall 2010 season had many ups and downs. It started out very successful with beating Vanderbilt and Maryland in the Maui Invitational. This had many Bearcat fans excited. They started the season off on the right foot. But that came crashing down when they got to the Big East play. The Bearcats had some impressive wins in the Big East by beating Uconn twice and winning three games in the Big East. The Bearcats just had to many losses where they should have won to make it to the Dance. They lost a lot of games to the bottom of the league. You cannot do that in the Big East and have a chance at the post season. But as an overall season I feel that the Bearcats have sent the program in the right direction. So hopefully the Bearcats can build on their successful season they had last year and move in the right direction towards the NCAA tournament.

Trying to get back to the NCAA Tournament

The Cincinnati Bearcats have not been to the NCAA tournament since 2005. The Bearcats have to set this goal as a high priority in this upcoming season. This will take hard work and dedication. The Bearcat players are going to have to do more than just show up this season. They play in the toughest conference in Basketball. So being in the Big East is a good thing for them, but also a bad thing. It is a good thing because it gives them a level of competition that no one else faces in the nation. It is a bad thing for the same exact reason. They can lose to the worst team by ten or beat the best team by 10. So the Bearcats have a lot of work to do this off season. If everything goes right for them then they will be participating in the BIG DANCE!!!

Final Big East Standings

After a hard fought season the University of Cincinnati finished eleventh out of sixteen teams. This is not what the Bearcats were hoping for in the beginning of the season. They were really hoping to finish in the top 5 so they could make the NCAA tournament for the first time in five years. The Bearcats were only two games away from finishing in the top 10 of the league. It may not seem like a big step for the program but it was a huge missed opportunity. If they could have finished in the top 10 of the league it would have been a huge confidence booster for the program. It definitely would have been a huge step in the right direction for the program. Now they will just have to fight even harder for next year to finish in the top 5 of the Big East Conference.

Bearcats 2011 Returners

The University of Cincinnati only has two seniors graduating this year. With Deonta Vaughn and Steve Toyloy leaving the Bearcats have a lot of players coming back. Also leaving is freshman guard Lance Stephenson. Coming back for the Bearcats are a lot of good players. Including Larry Davis, Dion Dixon, and Yancy Gates. These will be the three players that coach Mick Cronin will look to build his team around. Also Cashmere Wright is coming back, this is good for the Bearcats because he ended the year playing very well. With these main players coming back, the Bearcats look to build a successful and positive program.

Sad day for Bearcat Fans

In a previous post I said that Lance Stephenson would be staying at Cincinnati after his freshman year. I am disappointed to say that Lance will forgo his Cincinnati career and attend the NBA draft. Lance will hire an agent and will be eligible for the NBA draft on June 24th. The last Bearcat taken in the draft was James White. This is a big loss for the Bearcats for the upcoming season. Lance was named defensive player of the year for the team and was chosen as the Big East Rookie of the year. He would have been a key part to the Bearcats team in the 2011 season. Mick Cronin is going to have to go back to the drawing board and put his team together without one of his key pieces.

End of the year Awards for Bearcats

At the end of they year banquet several Bearcats received awards. Deonta Vaughn was the front runner winning three awards at the end of the year banquet. He took home the Oscar Robertson award for the third straight year. He was also awarded the free-trow-percentage and assist awards. The Oscar award is about on and off court accomplishments. Yancy Gates took home the rebounding award. This is the second year straight that he has won this award. This is a good confidence booster for Yancy Gates in the upcoming year. Lance Stephenson won the team's defensive award. The awards given out are a great honor to the players and they should be very excited with their awards.

Vaughn Invited to All-Star Game

Senior Deonta Vaughn has been invited to the 2010 Reese's All Star Game. The game is being held at Lucas Oil Stadium. This is also where the final four is held. This is especially good for Deonta because his hometown is Indianapolis. The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) is the association that chooses the senior players to play in the game. This will be Deonta Vaughn's final game as a college basketball player. He is finishing his excellent career at the University of Cincinnati. Vaughn was first in assists, three pointers made, and minutes played. He was also third overall in points scored.