Thomas scores season-high 20 and Cincinnati leads the entire second half of a 93-83 victory over UCF
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Day Day Thomas scored 18 of his season-high 20 points in the first half, Jizzle James had seven of his 15 points in the final four minutes and Cincinnati led the entire second half of a 93-83 victory over UCF on Wednesday night.
James sank a jumper from the free-throw line for an 85-77 lead and he added a left-handed layup on the next possession for a 10-point lead with 1:44 remaining. James also had a steal on back-to-back possessions in the final minute, both leading to dunks by Dillon Mitchell to help secure it.
Mitchell finished with 19 points and Aziz Bandaogo scored 16 points for Cincinnati (13-9, 3-8 Big 12 Conference). Thomas was making his second start of the season after doing so 35 times last year before breaking his foot in the NIT opener.
Keyshawn Hall led UCF (13-9, 4-7) with 23 points and Darius Johnson added 21 points. Moustapha Thiam had 14 points and eight rebounds and Jordan Ivy-Curry scored 11.
Thomas made a steal on UCF’s final possession of the first half and tipped in his own miss at the other end just before the halftime buzzer to give Cincinnati a 40-36 lead. It was the Bearcats’ highest scoring first half since netting 46 against Alabama State on Nov. 27.
Cincinnati hosts BYU on Saturday, when UCF plays at Baylor.
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