Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Unbeaten No. 11 Cincinnati beats Alabama State 83-51

Tulane v Cincinnati

CINCINNATI, OH - JANUARY 24: Gary Clark #11 of the Cincinnati Bearcats shoots the ball against the Tulane Green Wave at Fifth Third Arena on January 24, 2016 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

Getty Images

CINCINNATI (AP) — Gary Clark had 14 point and seven rebounds, and No. 11 Cincinnati stayed unbeaten heading into its game against its crosstown rival by beating winless Alabama State 83-51 on Monday night.

The Bearcats (7-0) play at No. 21 Xavier on Saturday. The Musketeers have won seven of the last 10 in the crosstown rivalry, although Cincinnati won on its home court last season.

Facing a ranked team for the first time in five years, Alabama State (0-7) had 20 turnovers that led to 30 Cincinnati points. Branden Johnson led with the Hornets with 10 points.

Cincinnati won its 30th straight home game, a streak that spans two home courts. The Bearcats are playing this season at BB&T Arena at Northern Kentucky University while their on-campus arena is renovated. They went 18-0 at Fifth Third Arena last season.

The Hornets shot 48 percent from the field in the first half and out-rebounded the bigger Bearcats 15-12, but their 13 turnovers helped Cincinnati take control 46-26. The teams finished even on the boards at 34-34.

BIG PICTURE

Alabama State: The Hornets have traveled 6,517 miles while opening the season with all road games. They’ve visited Mississippi, Iowa, South Dakota, Oregon, Tennessee and Kentucky.

Cincinnati: The Bearcats went 19 of 26 from the free-throw line. The Hornets didn’t shoot a free throw until Jacoby Ross went to the line with 55 seconds left and made both shots. The Bearcats were called for 11 fouls total.

UP NEXT

Alabama State plays at Jacksonville State on Thursday, its final road game before its home opener against Tennessee State on Dec. 12.

Cincinnati starts the first challenging stretch of its schedule. After the game at Xavier, it plays at No. 6 Florida, hosts Mississippi State, and plays at UCLA.