Cincinnati looks imposing to UD’s Gregory

Dayton coach impressed with Bearcats’ scrappy style of play.

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By Doug Harris, Staff Writer Updated 8:47 PM Sunday, March 21, 2010

University of Dayton basketball coach Brian Gregory was discussing his team’s NIT draw last week when someone pointed out how much fun a potential second-round meeting with Cincinnati could be.

“For who?” Gregory said with an incredulous, you-gotta-be-kidding-me expression.

UD (21-12) will play at Cincinnati (19-15) at 9 p.m. today, March 22, on ESPN for the right to advance to the quarterfinals against the winner of the game between Illinois (20-14) and Kent State (24-9).

Like the Flyers, the Bearcats have an abundance of athletic players, although more of the wide-bodied variety.

“They’re monsters on the glass,” said Gregory, who also admires UC’s scrappy style of play.

“They play a ton of guys. They’ve got live bodies. They’re good. And why are they so good? They play so hard on every single possession. As a coach, when you first watch a team, that’s what you always look at — because we always play hard. You look at whether a team can play as hard as we do.

“That’s why Cincinnati has been successful and why (coach Mick Cronin) is steadily building it up the right way into being a national power.”

UD fans may not feel all warm and fuzzy about the NIT — the first-round game with Illinois State drew a crowd of 5,127, the smallest audience to see a Flyer home game in 40 years — but senior point guard London Warren is grateful for the chance to extend the season.

“Any time now, it could be over for us. We have to try to earn another 40 minutes and wear the Flyer uniform again and play as hard as we can possibly play,” he said.

“We’re embracing this tournament like the NCAA tournament. It’s still for a championship, and we’re trying to win it.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2125 or dharris@DaytonDaily News.com.