Thursday, January 13, 2000
For Huggins, late night is all right
UC NOTEBOOK
BY SCOTT MacGREGOR
The Cincinnati Enquirer
NEW ORLEANS — Is it Midnight Madness or just madness: A midnight tipoff for a Cincinnati home game at the Shoemaker Center?
That's what the top-ranked Bearcats get Friday night when they play host to Ohio in a made-for-ESPN matchup. It's fine with UC coach Bob Huggins, who noticed about 25 or 30 students camped outside the Shoe for tickets Monday.
“I think once a year it's great for the students. They have such a great time,” Huggins said. “It tends to be a younger crowd, a more enthusiastic crowd.”
Huggins also likes the opponent, even if the Bobcats of the MAC do throw a bump in UC's Conference USA schedule.
“I think it's more fun when you play someone more local,” he said.
Senior Jermaine Tate, however, is no fan of the late start. “I don't think we really care for it,” he said. “We just have to come in well-rested.”
Warm weather
Though the Bearcats didn't spend time taking in the nightlife of New Orleans' French Quarter when they arrived to play Tulane Wednesday, there was one benefit to visiting the most exotic city in C-USA.
“At least it's a hot place, not like Boise,” Tate said. “It's nice to get out of (Cincinnati) once in a while.”
New home
Tulane leads the all-time series with UC in New Orleans 8-5, with all but one of those games played at old Fogelman Arena. Wednesday's game was the first between the teams played at the new New Orleans Arena, next to the Superdome downtown. The Green Wave is splitting its home games between its new and old homes this season.
'Cat scratches
Entering Wednesday's game, UC forward Pete Mickeal had scored 20 or more points in three of the previous four games (23, 16, 20, 23).
• Mickeal, the C-USA player of the week for the second straight week, worries Tulane coach Perry Clark, and for good reason. Mickeal had 22 points and 12 rebounds against the Wave in UC's win last year.
• Tulane was picked last in Conference USA's National Division and found itself there after an 0-2 league start. Its 10 overall wins, however, were tied for third in the league behind UC (14) and DePaul (11).
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