Howard pushes Cincinnati to the brink in Overtime loss

 The Howard Bison dropped a nail-biter in home defeat to Cincinnati 

By Ray Rogers

Washington, DC - The Cincinnati Bearcats visited Burr Gymnasium on Tuesday night, signaling yet another monumental step for the Howard Bison men’s basketball program that’s becoming accustomed to the bright lights. The reigning MEAC conference champions have also recently hosted the likes of Notre Dame and went toe to toe with Kansas in the first round of the 2023 NCAA tournament. The Howard Bison approached Tuesday’s matchup like a team unafraid of the big moment. 

Cincinnati outlasted Howard 86 - 81 in an exciting back-and-forth affair that went into overtime following a clutch three-pointer by graduate transfer Seth Towns in the waning seconds of regulation.  

The intense nature of this contest began from the outset as Howard struck first en route to a 10 - 4 lead while displaying a grittiness defensively that included two steals in the game's opening minutes. Despite having a significant size advantage, the Bearcats experienced difficulty handling Howard’s relentless on-ball pressure. 

Near the midway point of the first half, Howard standout sophomore Shy Odom exited with an apparent back injury, and at that juncture, the game began to tighten. Following Tuesday’s contest, Howard Head Coach Kenneth Blakeney lamented that he has yet to have a healthy group on the court together for any meaningful stretch to start this season.  

“We’ve been kinda not fully there with our full range of guys all year,” stated Blakeney, who equally emphasized the importance of having a next-man-up mentality. 

Cincinnati entered halftime leading Howard 34-29.  

The next-man-up message preceded a solid second-half effort from the Bison, who used a 12 - 0 run to pull ahead 50 - 45 with 10:55 remaining in the game. The two squads traded baskets down the stretch before Cincinnati rallied to tie things up at 61 - 61 with 6:10 remaining in the second half. 

The action intensified over the last six minutes of regulation, with the Bearcats gaining a five-point lead and maintaining a slim advantage until Towns’ heroics sent the game into overtime. Howard briefly held a two-point lead in the extra session before Cincinnati pulled ahead for good. Howard had an opportunity to attempt a game-tying 3-pointer with 0:04 remaining in overtime but turned the ball over, leading to a Cincinnati fast-break dunk to close the game out. 

Seth Towns led all scorers with 24 points.

The Howard Men’s basketball team’s upset bid may have fallen short. However, hosting a high-caliber opponent on the campus of an HBCU provided an array of opportunities that included exposure and awareness. During his postgame interview with reporters, Kenneth Blakeney was highly complementary of the Cincinnati program. 

“I want to give special thanks to coach Wes Miller. I think as coaches, we’re educators, and what Coach Miller did was he used this trip as an opportunity to bring his young men to Washington, DC to culturally educate them.” stated Blakeney, who added that the Cincinnati Bearcats also had the opportunity to visit the National Museum of African American history and culture as well. 

Howard will retake the court on December 11th for a road game at Penn.