2015–16 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team

The 2015–16 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team represented the University of Cincinnati during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bearcats, were led by tenth year head coach Mick Cronin, who returned full-time after taking a hiatus in December 2014. The Bearcats played their home games on Ed Jucker Court at Fifth Third Arena and were members of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season with a record of 22–11, 12–6 in AAC play to finish in a tie for third place in conference. The Bearcats lost in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament to UConn for the second consecutive year. They received an at-large bid as a #9 seed to the NCAA tournament. They lost in the First Round of the Tournament to Saint Joseph's.

2015–16 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball
Barclays Center Classic champions
NCAA tournament, First Round
Conference	American Athletic Conference
Record	22–11 (12–6 The American)
Head coach	Mick Cronin (10th season)
Assistant coaches	Larry Davis (10th season) Antwon Jackson (4th season) Darren Savino (6th season)
Home arena	Fifth Third Arena
Seasons ← 2014–15 2016–17 →

2015–16 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Temple	14	–	4		.778			21	–	12		.636
No. 24 SMU^*	13	–	5		.722			25	–	5		.833
Houston	12	–	6		.667			22	–	10		.688
Cincinnati	12	–	6		.667			22	–	11		.667
Tulsa	12	–	6		.667			20	–	12		.625
UConn †	11	–	7		.611			25	–	11		.694
Memphis	8	–	10		.444			19	–	15		.559
UCF	6	–	12		.333			12	–	18		.400
East Carolina	4	–	14		.222			12	–	20		.375
South Florida	4	–	14		.222			8	–	25		.242
Tulane	3	–	15		.167			12	–	22		.353
^* Ineligible for postseason due to postseason ban † American Athletic Conference tournament Champions Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

The Bearcats finished the 2014–15 season with a record of 23–11, 13–5 in AAC play to finish in a tie for third place in conference. They lost in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament to UConn. They received an at-large bid as a #8 seed to the NCAA tournament where they defeated #9 seeded Purdue in the Second Round before losing to #1 ranked Kentucky in the Third Round.

Offseason

Departing players

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Deshaun Morman	1	G	6'3'"	190	RS Freshman	Richmond, Virginia	Transferred to Towson^[1]
Ge’Lawn Guyn	14	G	6'2'"	185	Senior	Lexington, Kentucky	Left team; transferred to East Tennessee State^[2]
Jermaine Sanders	15	G	6'5'"	210	Senior	Far Rockaway, New York	Graduated
Jamaree Strickland	32	C	6'10'"	270	RS Freshman	Oakland, California	Transferred to Arizona Western College (mid-season)^[3]
Rob Blissitt Jr.	42	G	6'3'"	175	Sophomore	Markham, Illinois	Walk-on; did not return

Incoming Transfers

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Kyle Washington	C	6'9"	170	Junior	Champlin, MN	Transferred from NC State. Under NCAA transfer rules, Washington will have to sit out for the 2015–16 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.^[4]

Recruiting class of 2015

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Jacob Evans G	Baton Rouge, LA	St. Michael High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Oct 14, 2013
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 80
Justin Jenifer G	Gwynn Oak, MD	Milford Mill Academy	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Jun 9, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 80
Trevon Scott F	Darien, GA	McIntosh County Academy	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Sep 15, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals: N/A   247Sports:     ESPN grade: 78
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: NR   Rivals: NR  247Sports: 53  ESPN: NR
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Cincinnati 2015 Player Commits". ESPN.com. "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Recruiting class of 2016

US college sports recruiting information for 2016 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Nysier Brooks C	Burlington, New Jersey	Life Center Academy	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Jun 30, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 79
Jarron Cumberland SG	Wilmington, Ohio	Wilmington High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Jul 1, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 85
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: NR   Rivals: NR  247Sports: 62  ESPN: 40
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "ESPN". ESPN.com. "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2015–16 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown F 0 Quadri Moore 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 230 lb (104 kg) So Linden High School Linden, New Jersey G 1 Jacob Evans 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr St. Michael the Archangel High School Baton Rouge, Louisiana F 2 Octavius Ellis (C) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Trinity Valley CC Memphis, Tennessee F 3 Justin Jenifer 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Milford Mill Academy Gwynn Oak, Maryland G 10 Troy Caupain 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Cosby High School Midlothian, Virginia F 11 Gary Clark 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 235 lb (107 kg) So Clayton High School Clayton, North Carolina F 13 Trevon Scott   6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr McIntosh County Academy Darien, Georgia G 21 Farad Cobb (C) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Sr Northwest Florida SC West Palm Beach, Florida C 22 Coreontae DeBerry 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 270 lb (122 kg) Sr Hutchinson CC Holland, Michigan F 24 Shaq Thomas 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Sr NIA Prep Paterson, New Jersey G 25 Kevin Johnson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Summit Country Day School Cincinnati, Ohio F 32 Kyle Washington   6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr NC State Champlin, Minnesota F 45 Zack Tobler (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Jr Covington Catholic High School Fort Mitchell, Kentucky	Head coach Mick Cronin (Cincinnati) Assistant coach(es) Larry Davis (Asbury) Darren Savino (NJCU) Antwon Jackson (Pikeville) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster Last update: 15 May 2020

Depth chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2
C	Octavius Ellis	Coreontae DeBerry
PF	Gary Clark	Quadri Moore	Zack Tobler
SF	Shaq Thomas	Jacob Evans
SG	Farad Cobb	Kevin Johnson
PG	Troy Caupain	Justin Jenifer

Source^[5]

Schedule

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
November 3, 2015* 7:00pm		Grand Valley State	W 93–63		Fifth Third Arena (4,404) Cincinnati, OH
November 7, 2015* 12:00pm		Bellarmine	W 81–60		Fifth Third Arena (4,507) Cincinnati, OH
Non-conference regular season
November 13, 2015* 7:00pm, ESPN3		Western Carolina	W 97–72	1–0	Fifth Third Arena (7,213) Cincinnati, OH
November 15, 2015* 2:00pm, FSOH/ESPN3		Robert Morris	W 106–44	2–0	Fifth Third Arena (6,292) Cincinnati, OH
November 18, 2015* 7:00pm, ESPN3		at Bowling Green	W 83–50	3–0	Stroh Center (3,411) Bowling Green, OH
November 22, 2015* 1:00pm, FSOH/ESPN3		Arkansas–Pine Bluff Barclays Center Classic	W 99–50	4–0	Fifth Third Arena (6,083) Cincinnati, OH
November 24, 2015* 7:00pm, FSOH/ESPN3	No. 24	Southeastern Louisiana Barclays Center Classic	W 64–49	5–0	Fifth Third Arena (6,824) Cincinnati, OH
November 27, 2015* 6:30pm, ASN/ESPN3	No. 24	vs. Nebraska Barclays Center Classic semifinals	W 65–61	6–0	Barclays Center  Brooklyn, NY
November 28, 2015* 2:30pm, ASN/ESPN3	No. 24	vs. George Washington Barclays Center Classic Championship	W 61–56	7–0	Barclays Center  Brooklyn, NY
December 2, 2015* 7:00pm, CBSSN	No. 17	Butler	L 76–78	7–1	Fifth Third Arena (11,125) Cincinnati, OH
December 6, 2015* 5:30pm, ASN/ESPN3	No. 17	Morgan State	W 87–66	8–1	Fifth Third Arena (6,126) Cincinnati, OH
December 12, 2015* 5:30pm, FOX	No. 23	at No. 12 Xavier Crosstown Shootout	L 55–65	8–2	Cintas Center (10,617) Cincinnati, OH
December 15, 2015* 7:00pm, ESPNU	No. 23	Norfolk State	W 75–59	9–2	Fifth Third Arena (6,215) Cincinnati, OH
December 19, 2015* 4:00pm, CBSSN	No. 23	at VCU	W 69–63	10–2	Siegel Center (7,637) Richmond, VA
December 22, 2015* 7:00pm, ESPN2	No. 22	No. 11 Iowa State	L 79–81	10–3	Fifth Third Arena (13,176) Cincinnati, OH
AAC Regular Season
December 29, 2015 3:00pm, ESPN2	No. 22	Temple	L 70–77	10–4 (0–1)	Fifth Third Arena (10,029) Cincinnati, OH
January 2, 2016 4:00pm, ESPNU	No. 22	Tulsa	W 76–57	11–4 (1–1)	Fifth Third Arena (10,102) Cincinnati, OH
January 7, 2016 7:00pm, ESPN		at No. 15 SMU	L 57–59	11–5 (1–2)	Moody Coliseum (6,971) University Park, TX
January 10, 2016 12:00pm, ESPNU		at South Florida	W 54–51	12–5 (2–2)	USF Sun Dome (3,062) Tampa, FL
January 13, 2016 7:00pm, ESPNU		Houston	W 70–59	13–5 (3–2)	Fifth Third Arena (9,345) Cincinnati, OH
January 16, 2016 12:00pm, ESPNU		at Temple	L 65–67 ^2OT	13–6 (3–3)	Liacouras Center (7,481) Philadelphia, PA
January 21, 2016 7:00pm, ESPN2		Memphis Rivalry	W 76–72	14–6 (4–3)	Fifth Third Arena (10,320) Cincinnati, OH
January 24, 2016 12:00pm, ESPNU		Tulane	W 97–75	15–6 (5–3)	Fifth Third Arena (9,224) Cincinnati, OH
January 28, 2016 7:00pm, ESPNU		at UConn	W 58–57	16–6 (6–3)	XL Center (13,242) Hartford, CT
February 4, 2016 8:00pm, CBSSN		South Florida	W 88–57	17–6 (7–3)	Fifth Third Arena (9,116) Cincinnati, OH
February 6, 2016 12:00pm, ESPN2		at Memphis Rivalry	L 59–63	17–7 (7–4)	FedEx Forum (12,920) Memphis, TN
February 9, 2016 7:00pm, ESPNews		at UCF	W 69–51	18–7 (8–4)	CFE Arena (4,143) Orlando, FL
February 13, 2016 4:00pm, ESPNU		East Carolina	W 75–60	19–7 (9–4)	Fifth Third Arena (12,513) Cincinnati, OH
February 18, 2016 9:00pm, CBSSN		at Tulsa	L 68–70 ^OT	19–8 (9–5)	Reynolds Center (4,402) Tulsa, OK
February 20, 2016 4:00pm, ESPN2		UConn	W 65–60	20–8 (10–5)	Fifth Third Arena (13,176) Cincinnati, OH
February 27, 2016 12:00pm, ESPNU		at East Carolina	W 65–56	21–8 (11–5)	Williams Arena (4,841) Greenville, NC
March 3, 2016 9:00pm, CBSSN		at Houston	L 56–69	21–9 (11–6)	Hofheinz Pavilion (4,171) Houston, TX
March 6, 2016 12:00pm, CBS		No. 24 SMU	W 61–54	22–9 (12–6)	Fifth Third Arena (13,176) Cincinnati, OH
AAC Tournament
March 11, 2016 2:00pm, ESPN2	(4)	vs. (5) UConn Quarterfinals	L 97–104 ^4OT	22–10	Amway Center (7,475) Orlando, FL
NCAA Tournament
March 18, 2016* 9:57pm, truTV	(9 W)	vs. (8 W) Saint Joseph's First Round	L 76–78	22–11	Spokane Arena (11,274) Spokane, WA
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West Region. All times are in Eastern Time.

^[6]

Awards and milestones

American Athletic Conference honors

All-AAC Awards

• Defensive Player of the Year: Gary Clark

All-AAC First Team

• Troy Caupain

All-AAC Second Team

• Gary Clark

Player of the Week

• Week 3: Troy Caupain
• Week 17: Troy Caupain

Rookie of the Week

• Week 7: Jacob Evans
• Week 16: Jacob Evans

Source^[7]

Rankings

Main article: 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
RV = Received votes.

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Final
AP	RV	RV	24	17	23	23	22	22								RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	Not released
Coaches'	RV	RV	24	17	22	20	21	23											RV	RV	RV

References

1. Bains, Chris (April 14, 2015). "Deshaun Morman Officially Transferring From Cincinnati". Cincy on the Prowl. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
2. Young, Jake. "ETSU lands Cincinnati transfer Guyn". WJHL-News Channel 11. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
3. Vicar, Nathan. "Redshirt freshmen to transfer from UC's men's basketball program". WXIX Fox 19. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
4. "ACC Basketball: Former Wolfpack forward Kyle Washington headed to Cincinnati". Fayetteville Observer. BLOX Content Management System. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
5. "2015-16 Cincinnati Bearcats Roster and Stats".
6. . Archived from the original on December 31, 2010. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
7. "American Athletic Conference Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). American Athletic Conference. Retrieved December 21, 2018.