DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Begins BIG EAST Play at Cincinnati
12/27/2010 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
Dec. 27, 2010
| DePaul (6-6, 0-0 BIG EAST) at Cincinnati (12-0, 0-0 BIG EAST) | |
| Date & Time | Tuesday, Dec. 28 at 7 p.m. ET |
| Fifth Third Arena Information | Tickets | Directions & Parking |
| TV | ESPNU (PbP: Jim Barbar | Analyst: Mark Adams) |
| Online Video | ESPN3.com |
| Radio | WSCR 670 AM (PbP: Zach Zaidman | Analyst: Laurence Holmes) |
| Online Audio | BlueTube |
| Live Stats | Gametracker |
| Twitter Updates | @depaulsid |
| DePaul Information | Game Notes |
Cincinnati Information | Game Notes |
CINCINNATI, Ohio - DePaul opens its sixth BIG EAST campaign with a road game at Cincinnati on Tuesday night. The Blue Demons and Bearcats are scheduled for a 7 p.m. ET tip at Fifth Third Arena on the University of Cincinnati's campus.
Tuesday's game is the first of two straight on the road for the Blue Demons as they travel to the nation's capital to play ninth-ranked Georgetown on New Year's Day. DePaul opens the home portion of the BIG EAST schedule on Jan. 4 against West Virginia at Allstate Arena.
The Blue Demons concluded non-conference action with a three-game winning streak and enter league play at 6-6 overall. Cincinnati is a perfect 12-0 heading into its league opener with an average margin of victory of 21.4 points per game.
All of the action can be heard on WSCR 670 The Score in Chicagoland with Zach Zaidman (play-by-play) and Laurence Holmes (analyst). Jim Barbar (play-by-play) and Mark Adams (analyst) will take care of the broadcasting duties on ESPNU and ESPN3.com. In-game scoring updates and notes can be followed as well at www.twitter.com/depaulsid.
Following the Cincinnati game, the Blue Demons play at Georgetown on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET on the BIG EAST Network. That game can also be heard on 670 The Score with Zaidman and Holmes and seen online on ESPN3.com.
BIG EAST Openers: The Blue Demons are 1-4 in BIG EAST first games with the 84-76 win over Villanova to start the 2007-08 conference schedule serving as the single victory. DePaul's league-opening win over the 17th-ranked Wildcats sparked a 3-1 BIG EAST start for DePaul to set the best conference start in program history.
A year ago, the Blue Demons dropped a 65-52 decision at Pittsburgh Dec. 28, 2009. Including this season's Cincinnati game, the Blue Demons have started the BIG EAST slate on the road in four of six seasons. DePaul played its first BIG EAST at Cincinnati on Jan. 4, 2006.
DePaul has been a member of a conference since the 1991-92 season starting with membership in the Great Midwest Conference followed by a 10-year run in Conference USA. The Blue Demons joined the BIG EAST in July 2005 and are 5-14 all-time in conference openers.
Purnell Wins 400: Oliver Purnell notched his 400th career win on Dec. 22 as he led the Blue Demons over Florida Atlantic, 71-62, at Allstate Arena. He has compiled 400 victories in his 23 seasons as a NCAA Division I head coach at Radford (1988-91), Old Dominion (1991-94), Dayton (1994-03) and Clemson (2003-10). He is in his first season at DePaul with a career record of 400-282. Purnell has recorded a milestone win at each stop of his coaching career with his first victory at Radford, his 100th win at Old Dominion, his 200th victory at Dayton, win No. 300 was with Clemson and his 400th win was with DePaul.
Noting the Blue Demons: The men's basketball program is 1,371-843 (.619) all-time... the Blue Demons have knocked down at least one three-pointer in 529 straight games... DePaul's last game without a three was Feb. 16, 1993 against UAB at Allstate Arena... the Dec. 22 game against Florida Atlantic was the 430th for DePaul at Allstate Arena... the Blue Demons are 307-123 (.714) all-time in Rosemont... DePaul is 3-1 all-time in games at McGrath Arena... DePaul has: trailed at halftime in six games, been outrebounded in 10 games, allowed opponent to shoot .400 or better in 10 games, and forced 20 or more turnovers in five games this season... the Blue Demons have used three different starting line-ups this season... in four games this season, DePaul has overcome a deficit of eight or more points... the Blue Demons trailed Oklahoma State (8 pts. with 5:54 left in first half), Stanford (11 pts. with 13:56 left in first half), Central Michigan (14 pts. with 8:16 left in first half) and Ball State (10 pts. with 17:54 left in second half)... two players have recorded a four-point play this season... Cleveland Melvin was intentionally fouled a lay-up and made the two free throws against Ball State on Dec. 11... Jeremiah Kelly was fouled on a three-pointer and made the free throw against Loyola-Chicago on Dec. 18.
Opponent No. 12 - Cincinnati Bearcats: Cincinnati begins BIG EAST play at 12-0... the Bearcats posted a 94-58 win over St. Francis (Pa.) on Dec. 23... the team is winning by an average of 21.4 points per game... Dion Dixon leads a balanced scoring attack with 12.8 points per game... he is followed by Yancy Gates (11.4 ppg), Sean Kilpatrick (10.4 ppg) and Cashmere Wright (10.0 ppg)... Gates leads the team with 6.7 rebounds per game... head coach Mick Cronin is in his fifth season at Cincinnati.
The Series: Tuesday is the 47th all-time meeting between the two programs... DePaul has won three of the last five meetings... the two sides have split the last 10 games... DePaul is just 4-17 in the series in game at Cincinnati.
The Last Meeting: DePaul dropped a 74-69 decision at Cincinnati on Feb. 24, 2010... Mac Koshwal posted a 19-point, 12-rebound double-double and Will Walker scored 24 points... Cincinnati led by as many as 13 points early in the second half before DePaul pulled to within four at the 10-minute mark... the Blue Demons got within two points at 55-53 before a 10-3 run by the Bearcats sealed the game... Yancy Gates led the Bearcats with 23 points and eight rebounds... Lance Stephenson added an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double.
It Could Happen: Jeremiah Kelly could be making his 20th straight start... a win would end a 23-game losing streak in road games... DePaul's last regular-season road win was Nov. 22, 2008 at UIC by a 67-63 score... a win would also end a 13-game losing streak in BIG EAST regular-season games (13 straight to BIG EAST opponents including loss at USF in BIG EAST Championship first round).
Month-to-Month: After starting the season with a 1-4 record in November, the Blue Demons have turned things around with a 5-2 mark in December. The five victories mark the most victories in December since the 2006-07 team went posted a 7-1 record in December. Over the last three season, DePaul has posted December records of 3-5 in 2009-10, 4-6 in 2008-09 and 2-5 in 2007-08.
Demon Doings: Notes following DePaul's 71-62 win against Florida Atlantic on Dec. 22:
- Head coach Oliver Purnell won his 400th career game... he is 400-282 in his 23 seasons as a head coach.... Purnell has won a milestone game at each stop of his coaching career.... No. 1 was at Radford (91-70 vs. California (Pa.) on Nov. 30, 1988)... No. 100 was at Old Dominion (76-72 vs. Richmond on Mar. 1, 2004)... No. 200 was at Dayton (70-61 vs. Duquesne on Jan. 6, 2001) and No. 300 was at Clemson (95-82 vs. Georgia Tech on Mar. 4, 2006).
- The game was No. 430 all-time for DePaul at Allstate Arena... the Blue Demons are 307-123 (.714) all-time in Rosemont.
- DePaul's five wins in December are the most since a 7-1 record in December during the 2006-07 season... the Blue Demons play at Cincinnati on Dec. 28 to conclude the month.
- The Blue Demons won three straight games for the first time this season.
- DePaul's 42 points in the first half are the most since scoring 59 in the first half in the season opener against Chicago State on Nov. 14.
- Cleveland Melvin posted his fifth straight game in double-figures (sixth double-figure game overall)... Tony Freeland scored in double-figures for the seventh time in eight games (eight this season/nine in career)... Jimmy Drew reached double-figures for the second time this season (fifth career).
- Florida Atlantic is 1-1 this season against BIG EAST programs... the Owls defeated USF, 50-42, on Dec. 4.
aWednesday is the first all-time meeting between the two programs.
It's Been a While: DePaul freshman Brandon Young scored in double-figures in each of his first seven collegiate games. He is the first rookie to score at least 10 points in the first seven contests since Lance Williams started the 1998-99 season with nine straight games in double-figures. Quentin Richardson opened his collegiate career with Williams and recorded double-figures in his first four games while Bobby Simmons accomplished the feat over his first three games at DePaul. Young's run ended with a five-point outing at Indiana State on Dec. 8.
In addition to leading the Blue Demons in scoring at 14.4 points per game, Young also leads the team with 40 assists and a .476 (10-21) three-point field goal percentage. Young's scoring average is also tops among BIG EAST freshmen and ranked 20th overall. He is the only freshman among the league's 16 programs ranked in the top 30 in scoring entering Monday's action. Young is also 13th in the BIG EAST with 3.92 assists per game and is 14th in the league with a .533 field goal percentage entering Monday night's games. He is the ONLY PLAYER in the BIG EAST to rank in the top 20 in scoring, the top 15 in field goal percentage and the top 15 in assists per game.
Rookies of the Week: DePaul freshmen Cleveland Melvin and Brandon Young have each picked up BIG EAST Rookie of the Week honors this season marking the first time that two DePaul freshman have earned the league's weekly honor in the same season.
Young was selected on Dec. 6 after games against Northern Illinois and Central Michigan. He scored all 17 of his points in the second half against Northern Illinois on Dec. 2 before erupting for a career-high 31 points against Central Michigan on Dec. 5. The Baltimore native totaled 31 points by going 9-for-11 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the three-point line. He also knocked down 7-of-10 free throws and added two rebounds and two steals.
Melvin was named the BIG EAST's Rookie of the Week on Dec. 27 following a career-high 23 points against Florida Atlantic on Dec. 22. He added four rebounds to his career-high scoring total along with two steals, a blocked shot and an assist in 27 minutes of action. Midway through the first half Melvin personally outscored Florida Atlantic, 13-12.
Melvin and Young are the third and fourth Blue Demon freshman to earn the league's Rookie of the Week recognition joining Wilson Chandler (twice in 2005-06) and Dar Tucker (once in 2007-08).
Getting Settled: A year ago, DePaul struggled at the free throw line and ranked last in the NCAA rankings with a team free throw percentage of .582. Through the first 12 games of 2010-11, the Blue Demons are a combined 208-of-294 (.707) from the charity stripe. DePaul is 114 out of 336 ranked team in the Dec. 19 NCAA statistical rankings and fifth among the 16 schools in the BIG EAST through games of Dec. 26. In the last three games, the Blue Demons are a combined 47-of-59 (.797) from the free throw line.
A closer look at the numbers show that the team increases its free throw percentage as the game moves into the second half. The Blue Demons are a combined 84-for-125 (.672) from the line in the first 20 minutes compared to a free throw percentage of .736 (120-163) in the second half. Individually, Brandon Young is 16-of-26 (.615) in the first half this season and 18-for-25 (.720) in the second half while Tony Freeland is 16-for-27 (.593) in the first half and 29-of-41 (.707) in the second period.
One final comparison to last season at the free throw line sees the Blue Demons increasing their trips to the line after averaging 17.1 free throw attempts last season compared to 24.5 attempts per game in 2010-11.
