DePaul University Athletics
Blue Demons Falls in Conference USA Tournament Finale
3/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Tony Bobbitt overcame a punch to the groin, returning to make the decisive shots, and Cincinnati won the Conference USA tournament championship by beating DePaul 55-50 on Saturday.
The 13th-ranked Bearcats (24-6) survived a tumultuous second half -- a technical foul, an ejection, a wild last minute -- to get their fourth tournament title. They also won a share of the regular season championship.
Bobbitt left the game after LeVar Seals hit him in the groin with 8:22 left, drawing an ejection. When he recovered from the low blow, Bobbitt returned and made a pivotal 3-pointer and a driving lay-in that clinched it.
Bobbitt ran down the court with his arms raised like a championship prize fighter after his lay-in put Cincinnati up 52-45 with 39 seconds left. He was voted the tournament's MVP, finishing with a team-high 17 points.
DePaul (21-9) shot a season-low 35.3 percent from the field in its second Conference USA tournament final. The Blue Demons lost to Saint Louis in the 2000 game.
There were two technical fouls and Seals' ejection in a hard-edged game played only 12 hours after the semifinals ended.
The teams split their season series, with DePaul beating the Bearcats in Chicago last week. That game cost Cincinnati a chance to win the regular season championship outright, setting up a five-way tie for first place.
Just as it did during its semifinal win over Alabama-Birmingham, DePaul came out lethargic and fell behind by double-digits. This time, there would be no comeback.
There were plenty of on-the-edge moments.
Field Williams hit a 3 and Bobbitt made three free throws for a 12-point lead late in the first half. The last free throw came off a technical foul on Drake Diener, who lost his cool after two days of tight defense.
Diener, the conference's most accurate 3-point shooter, made only one in the semifinal victory over UAB, which kept him covered tightly. The Bearcats switched defenders and kept the ball out of his hands as well.
Midway through the first half, Diener and Williams jockeyed for position on an inbound play, prompting referee Tim Higgins to step between them and lecture.
Diener later threw an elbow at Williams after he was fouled while dribbling, drawing the technical. Diener finished 0-for-4 from behind the arc with seven points. Delonte Holland led DePaul with 17.
The Bearcats gave DePaul a chance to get back into it by failing to score for more than six minutes at the start of the second half. Cincinnati missed its first five shots and had four turnovers.
Forward Eric Hicks, who hangs on the rim and showboats after a dunk, did it again after breaking the Bearcats' drought with an emphatic slam at 13:45. He drew a technical foul, and coach Bob Huggins walked onto the court and screamed, ``I told you!'' at Hicks.
Holland's putback with 10:38 cut it to 39-34, but Bobbitt hit a 3-pointer to stop the comeback, then was involved in the game's biggest flap.
Seals punched Bobbitt in the groin during a play, sending Bobbitt to the floor in pain. Seals was ejected and booed loudly as he walked off the floor.
DePaul couldn't get closer than five points, and Hicks' putback made it 47-39 with 2:56 left. Bobbitt then hit a 3-pointer from the right wing, and flexed his wiry arms in a muscle pose as he ran down the court.
During the next timeout, the DePaul pep band played the theme from ``Rocky.'' Bobbitt raised his arms like a winning prize fighter after he got the ball, dribbled through a full-court press and made his lay-in.
