Cleveland St. Vikings vs Cincinnati Bearcats Box Score on Dec 21, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Dec 21, 2017

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. -- Gary Clark scored 18 points and Jarron Cumberland added 14, lifting No. 20 Cincinnati to an 81-62 victory over Cleveland State on Thursday night at BB&T Arena.

The Bearcats (11-2) finished the game on a 21-8 run to extend the nation's longest active home-court winning streak to 33.

Bearcats senior forward Kyle Washington scored 14 points to eclipse 1,000 for his career.

Freshman guard Tyree Appleby scored 16 points and Kenny Carpenter added 11 for Cleveland State, which fell to 0-7 on the road.

The Vikings (3-8) shot 50 percent from the floor and 47 percent from 3-point range, but with 18 minutes left, they were shooting 70 percent from the floor to stay close.

Cleveland State began the game 5 of 9 from 3-point range and took a 25-23 lead on a 3-pointer from Kasheem Thomas.

Cincinnati, which committed 15 turnovers a Tuesday win over Arkansas Pine Bluff, had six turnovers in the first half Thursday and finished with 11. However, Cleveland State committed 11 of its own in the opening half, and the Bearcats converted those into 19 points.

The Vikings shot 68.4 percent in the half and were 7-for-12 from 3-point range.

Trevor Moore beat the halftime buzzer with a 3-pointer, giving Cincinnati its largest lead, 43-34.

Cleveland State's hot shooting continued, though. The Vikings opened the second half with a 7-0 run to reduce a nine-point deficit to two.

Justin Jenifer's 3-pointer pushed Cincinnati's lead to 60-49 with fewer than 10 minutes left. Cleveland State scored five straight points to stay close, but turnovers continued to plague the Vikings as Cincinnati pulled away late.

The Bearcats do not play again until opening American Athletic Conference play against Memphis on December 31.

NOTES: Cincinnati's last nonconference home loss was to Temple on Dec. 29, 2015. ... The Bearcats are playing their home games on the campus of Northern Kentucky University while Fifth Third Arena undergoes an $87 million renovation. ... Cleveland State is 6-44 all-time vs. ranked opponents. The Vikings' last victory over a ranked team was a 71-58 win over No. 7 Vanderbilt in 2011. ... The Bearcats lead the all-time series 12-0. The Thursday game was the school's first meeting since 1999.