Sunday, December 05, 1999

UC 75, Gonzaga 68

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Unbeaten Bearcats unhappy winners

BY MIKE DeCOURCY
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Steve Logan soars over two defenders for a layup. (AP photos) | ZOOM |

        CLEVELAND — Steve Logan got a good, long look at the box score, so he knew what he'd done in 38 minutes of basketball Saturday night. The final score was hardly a secret, either, and the UC Bearcats were on the proper side. None of the numbers mattered.

        There may be other teams that can defeat a top 25 opponent and live to frown about it, but few do it with such a dramatic flair as the No. 1-ranked Bearcats. They left the Gund Arena with a 75-68 victory over Gonzaga but with no sense of satisfaction.

        Logan returned to his hometown with 21 points, four assists and was perfect on four 3-point attempts. Yet he talked about all of this with a sort of scowl, his eyes lowered to the floor.

        “I just tried to be aggressive,” Logan said. “I saw my family Friday night; once that was over with, it was business. I blocked out who was in the crowd.”

        With center Kenyon Martin blocking four shots, the Bearcats (5-0) dominated the No.25-ranked Bulldogs (4-1) in the first half, holding them to 28 percent shooting — including a combined 3-of-12 by star guards Richie Frahm and Matt Santangelo — and forcing 10 turnovers.

DerMarr Johnson with a new headband. | ZOOM |

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        Less than 12 minutes into the second half, however, that lead was down to five points. The Bearcats were sluggish on offense and less emphatic on defense. Seniors Pete Mickeal and

        Ryan Fletcher were benched for extended stretches, though each returned to contribute.

        Gonzaga forward Casey Calvary stormed down the lane past UC's Jermaine Tate and dunked to make it 56-50 with 8:44 left, drawing a foul from Martin as he connected. He was cut on the play and had to have Mike Nilson made the free throw for him.

        “We couldn't let it get closer than that,” said Martin, who recorded a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. “That's the sign of a good basketball team. When you're on the ropes, don't quit.”

        UC built the lead back to 13 when Mickeal scored on a spin move through the lane and Logan and Fletcher followed with free throws. The Bearcats made six of their final seven foul shots and got a 3-pointer from Fletcher to stay in front.

Kenyon Martin. | ZOOM |

        “I don't want to win because we're talented,” coach Bob Huggins said. “I want to win because we execute and we're good.”

        In the first half, the Bearcats gave every reason to wonder how Gonzaga managed to squeeze into the top 25 poll.

        UC executed masterfully at the defensive end early in the game. The Bearcats' game plan was to avoid being overcome by Gonzaga's extensive perimeter screening, which meant switching assignments when it was inevitable a pick would create an opening. If that left Logan guarding 6-foot-11 Axel Dench, no problem — so long as that switch came 20 feet from the basket. With so little room to manuever, the Bulldogs began to force shots and went 5:36 before breaking the shutout.

        “They take away a lot of your strengths and force you into your third and fourth options,” said Gonzaga coach Mark Few. “We've seen similar schemes, but not with athletes like that.”

        Santangelo never played as if he were frustrated, but UC was able to keep a defender in front of him the majority of the time, most often Logan or Kenny Satterfield. Santangelo slammed two 3-pointers off the backboard and airballed another.

        “We switched the screens because we've got a whole bunch of people who can't get through them,” Huggins said. “We've got guys that get screened in walk-through.”

        As large as the Bearcats' lead became, it could have been more without their nine turnovers and the nine offensive rebounds they allowed. They were impatient on offense, frequently shooting after the first pass, and scored just once in eight possessions.

        “It was 6-0 for the longest time. We got it going after a while, but we didn't capitalize on our opportunities,” Martin said.

        After Martin and Fletcher scored 12 points in a 17-point Bearcats surge that gave them a 25-11 lead, Gonzaga shifted to a zone defense the Bearcats were able to punish. First Sat terfield, then Mickeal, then Logan hit from 3-point range. UC moved ahead, 34-17.

        With Gonzaga's basic offense ineffective, the Bulldogs adjusted at halftime to bringing Calvary away from the goal, which created more one-on-one situations inside. He scored 13 points to fuel the comeback.

        “We told our guys that Calvary was good and athletic,” Huggins said. “You figured they'd pick that up when he hit his head on the rim dunking the one, but they didn't, because he did it again.

        “It seems to me they're more interested in themselves than they are a basketball team. That's disturbing.”

A win isn't a win when you are No. 1
Fletcher takes flack for defense
Huggins to review Land's status soon

Women's Hometown Shootout today

   
GONZAGA (68)
                      fg    ft    rb
               min   m-a   m-a   o-t  a pf   tp
Frahm           36  5-13   5-9   1-6  4  2   16
Calvary         30   4-9   3-4   3-5  1  3   13
Dench           20   4-9   0-1   1-5  0  5    9
Santangelo      40  5-14   0-0   1-6  6  2   12
Nilson          15   0-3   1-1   1-5  0  5    1
Floyd           29   2-9   0-0   1-5  2  3    6
Tricco           0   0-0   0-0   0-0  0  0    0
Spink           22   4-5   1-3   1-1  0  4    9
Gourde           8   1-2   0-0   1-1  0  0    2
_______________________________________________
TOTALS         200 25-64 10-18 10-34 13 24   68
_______________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.391, FT-.556. 3-Point Goals:
8-23, .348 (Frahm 1-6, Calvary 2-4, Dench 1-2,
Santangelo 2-6, Nilson 0-2, Floyd 2-3). Team
rebounds: 44. Blocked shots: 2 (Dench, Spink).
Turnovers: 14 (Dench 6, Calvary 3, Spink 2,
Frahm, Nilson, Santangelo). Steals: 5 (Calvary 2,
Dench, Floyd, Frahm).

CINCINNATI (75)
                      fg    ft    rb
               min   m-a   m-a   o-t  a pf   tp
Tate            28   1-4   0-0   1-6  1  5    2
Mickeal         23   2-3   3-4   0-2  3  3    8
Martin          30  6-13   4-4  1-13  0  3   16
Logan           38   6-8   5-6   0-2  4  0   21
Johnson         23   0-5   6-6   0-2  1  1    6
Satterfield     31   2-7   1-3   0-3  6  2    6
Stokes           5   0-0   0-0   0-1  0  0    0
Fletcher        18   5-9   2-2   2-4  0  3   13
Little           4   0-1   3-4   0-2  0  2    3
_______________________________________________
TOTALS         200 22-50 24-29  4-35 15 19   75
_______________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.440, FT-.828. 3-Point Goals:
7-12, .583 (Mickeal 1-1, Logan 4-4, Johnson 0-3,
Satterfield 1-3, Fletcher 1-1). Team rebounds:
39. Blocked shots: 6 (Martin 4, Johnson 2).
Turnovers: 16 (Martin 4, Logan 2, Satterfield 2,
Fletcher, Johnson, Little, Mickeal, Stokes,
Tate). Steals: 8 (Logan 2, Mickeal 2, Satterfield
2, Martin, Tate).
__________________________________
Gonzaga            25   43  -   68
Cincinnati         42   33  -   75
__________________________________
Technical fouls: None. Officials: Don Rutledge,
Edgar Ramos, Steven Pyatt.