By Bill Koch
The Cincinnati Enquirer

ANDERSON, S.C. - If Bob Huggins could climb up on Santa's lap today and hand him a wish list, it would contain a center who could score, a point guard to back up Taron Barker and someone, anyone who could make an open shot.

Tony Bobbitt fights Clemson's Akin Akingbala and Ola Babalola for a loose ball. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

Not to make any judgments on whether has the University of Cincinnati basketball coach has been naughty or nice, but the fact is none of those gifts will be waiting for him under the tree Christmas morning, which means somehow he's going to have to make due with what he has.

And what he has doesn't seem nearly as fun as it did just a few days ago.

Five days after UC knocked off No. 5 Oregon at the Meadowlands with a staunch defense and an fancy display of long-range shooting, the old Bearcats (5-3) returned Sunday in a 58-51 slugfest loss to unranked Clemson (7-0) before 5,000 fans at the Civic Center at Anderson.

In one evening, all the promise and potential that seemed to spring from that victory over Oregon was wiped out.

"Beating Oregon, that's in the past," said UC guard Tony Bobbitt. "We should have come out and executed and made shots."

Jason Maxiell dunks. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

They did neither and as a result, instead of scattering for the holidays with two victories over previously unbeaten opponents under their belts, the Bearcats parted ways with their coach just as baffled as he was before the Oregon game. Barker, who visited a doctor two days ago because of a sore back, is playing too many minutes for him to be at his best. That's just one more problem to add to the roster of what ails this team.

"Our guards are 5-for-24," Huggins said. "How are you going to win when we don't have a post presence other than Max (Jason Maxiell) and he's sitting over there by me (because of foul trouble)?"

The Bearcats are so ineffective offensively - they shot 34.5 percent Sunday - it's difficult to decide which deficiency hurts them more - the lack of inside scoring or the inability of their guards to make open shots.

One problem compounds the other, forming a vicious circle for which there seems no apparent answer.

Bob Huggins argues with an official. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

"We're going to have to develop more of a post presence," Huggins said. "They can't score with their backs to the basket, but that doesn't mean they can't make a five or six footer and they should be able to slip in and make a layup occasionally.

"But it's a two-fold problem. We don't pass it to them very well, but they don't much with it when they've got it."

UC, which was outrebounded, 39-31, played its usual dogged defense, which was good enough to keep the Bearcats in the game despite their poor shooting. But after trailing at the half, 26-25, and holding scoreless Clemson point guard Edward Scott, who averages 19.3 points per game, Scott exploded in the second half to score all 20 of his points.

UC tried to slow him with Barker and then with Stokes, but neither could out contain Scott, who twice made threes with the shot clock running down.

Clemson's Edward Scott drives past Taron Barker. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

"In the first half, I was out of sync, rushing my shots," Scott said. "Cincinnati is such a good defensive team. I got a couple of open looks but I was so surprised to have them that I rushed the shots. In the second half, I settled down and let the game come to me."

Clemson spread its one-point lead to eight with 16:40 to go. UC fought back to tie the score at 47 with 5:08 left on a Maxiell basket, but the Bearcats were outscored 11-4 the rest of the way.

UC guard Field Williams continued to wrestle with his shot. He was 1-for-6 and has scored only three points in his past two games.

"Somehow I've got to talk Field back to getting to his spot," Bobbitt said. "There's no way he can play the way he's playing right now. He's way better than that. I know he is."

The Bearcats thought they were way better than what they showed Sunday and they had the Oregon win to prove it. But that Oregon win doesn't seem so uplifting now.

E-mail bkoch@enquirer.com

Cincinnati	M	FG	Att	FT	Att	R	A	F	TO	TP
Stokes	40	5	16	4	5	2	2	3	2	15
Maxiell	32	5	8	1	2	8	1	3	0	11
Johnson	12	1	1	0	0	3	0	1	0	2
Williams	15	1	7	0	0	0	0	3	0	3
Barker	36	0	6	1	3	4	2	5	2	1
Land	3	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
Hollman	9	1	1	2	2	3	0	4	0	4
Lucas	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Bobbitt	25	4	11	1	2	5	3	3	1	10
Flowers	24	2	4	1	2	3	0	2	0	5
Kirkland	0+	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Totals	200	19	55	10	16	31	8	24	5	51

Team rebounds: 2

Clemson	M	FG	Att	FT	Att	R	A	F	TO	TP
Babalola	32	3	5	5	6	2	0	3	0	11
Hobbs	28	4	5	0	2	7	0	4	0	8
Ford	27	1	2	1	4	7	0	4	1	3
Scott	40	7	18	4	4	2	6	0	4	20
Christie	36	2	6	7	8	5	1	1	3	12
Betko	10	0	2	0	0	2	0	3	1	0
Henderson	22	1	3	2	2	7	0	4	1	4
Robinson	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Akingbala	3	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
Totals	200	18	41	19	26	39	7	19	10	58

Team rebounds: 5.

Cincinnati	25	26	-51
Clemson	26	32	-58

Attendance-5,000. 3-point goals-Cincinnati 3-17 (Stokes 1-6, Williams 1-4, Barker 0-3, Bobbitt 1-4); Clemson 3-11 (Babalola 0-1, Scott 2-4, Christie 1-4, Betko 0-2). Technical fouls-None. Officials-Boudreaux, Rose, Caldwell.