The undefeated No. 17-ranked Cincinnati Bearcats (7-0) look to remain unbeaten when they compete against the Butler Bulldogs (4-1) at Fifth Third Arena. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Dec. 2 and will air on CCS.
The Bearcats enter this game hoping for similar success after beating George Washington 61-56 on Saturday. Gary Clark played well, contributing six points, 11 rebounds, and three steals for the Bearcats. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, are coming off an 89-73 win against SIUE on Saturday. Kellen Dunham led the game in scoring with 32 points on 10-for-15 shooting.
Cincinnati is a six-point favorite against Butler and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is 140 points. The Bearcats come into this game 7-0 Straight Up (SU) and 2-1-1 Against The Spread (ATS). The Bearcats have one of the most prolific home offenses in the entire nation, averaging 91.5 points per game. The Bearcats are one of the best in Division I in terms of free throws made, making a superb 17.0 per game. Cincinnati is one of the most disciplined teams in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.48. As for the Cincinnati defense, opponents have consistently had their shots rejected by the Bearcats, ranking 26th in the country in blocks per game with 5.7.
On the other side, Butler has a SU record of 4-1 and an ATS record of 2-3. When it comes to making good decisions with the ball, not many are better than the Bulldogs. They have one of the top assist-to-turnover ratios in the country at 1.86.
Cincinnati and Butler have not played one another in a regular season matchup in recent years.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cin, ATS Winner – Butler, O/U – Under
Notes
Cincinnati is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games.
Cincinnati averages 82.1 points per game (ranked 55th). Butler, on the other hand, allows 71.4 points per game (ranked 169th).
Cincinnati scores 91.5 points per home game (ranked 35th). Butler ranks a poor 125th in points allowed on the road, allowing 72.0 points.
Ranked 26th, the Cincinnati Bearcats have an offensive rating of 119.4. The Butler Bulldogs rank 131st with a defensive rating of just 98.5.
Butler beats Cincinnati in both possessions per game and points per possession. The Bulldogs average 72.5 possessions and 1.310 points per possession, while the Bearcats average 68.8 possessions with 1.194 points per possession.
Cincinnati averages an effective field goal percentage of 54.0%. Butler has not won a game this season when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage (0-1).
This season, Cincinnati has averaged 21.0 three pointers and Butler has averaged 19.0. When Cincinnati and Butler attempt at least 20 three pointers, both teams are undefeated. The Cincinnati Bearcats are 5-0 and the Butler Bulldogs are 2-0.
The eighth-ranked team in the category, Butler has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.86 this season. Cincinnati ranks 37th with an A/TO of 1.48.
Cincinnati ranks 47th in rebounds per game with 42.3 and Butler ranks 46th with 42.4 rebounds per game.
Cincinnati ranks 81st in defensive rebounding. When it comes to offensive rebounds, Butler ranks 60th.
Opponents have had an average turnover percentage of 17.1% when playing Butler this season. Cincinnati is undefeated this season (4-0) when its TO% is 17.1% or higher.
