Saturday, December 29, 2001
Q&A with Michael Perry and Neil Schmidt
UC fans missing McGhee
By Michael Perry and Neil Schmidt
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Lots of UC fans must have been watching Dec.21 when Oklahoma beat then-No.2-ranked Maryland 72-56. Former Bearcat Aaron McGhee scored 16 points — 12 in the second half — and added 11 rebounds that night, prompting a couple e-mails.
We haven't heard much from Xavier fans recently. Nor have we heard much about Conference USA or the Atlantic 10. We're waiting ...
Q, from Bill in Hyde Park: I watched Aaron McGhee perform very well in the Oklahoma/Maryland game. What is the reason he left UC, and why didn't he return?
Q, from Michael in Anderson: What is the story with Ace McGhee? He is playing really well in Oklahoma. Did he and coach Bob Huggins just not see eye to eye?
A: McGhee told the Enquirer in February that he and the UC coaches mutually decided it would be best for him to get some experience at a junior college. He was playing behind Kenyon Martin, Jermaine Tate and Ryan Fletcher, and there was no playing time in McGhee's foreseeable future at UC. Despite talk that MGhee would return to the Bearcats, he did not think that would happen.
McGhee then attended Vincennes (Ind.) University. He said that after one recruiting visit to Oklahoma, he knew it was the place for him. He would have a chance to play right away and in a more laid-back environment. “Sometimes it's better to leave than stay,” he told the Enquirer. “So I left, and that was the best decision for me.”
Q, from Tony in Reading: I would like to know how UC's new recruits for 2002-03 are doing in high school.
A: We only semi-answered this question two weeks ago with some information on Oak Hill Academy guard Chadd Moore. Here's the rest:
Eric Hicks, the 6-foot-6 forward from Greensboro, N.C., was averaging about 29 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks heading into a weekend tournament. Hicks had a triple-double with 36 points, 17 rebounds and 10 blocks in Dudley High's first conference game.
Armein Kirkland, the 6-8 guard at Robert E. Lee High School in Tyler, Texas, was averaging 20.9 points, 8.2 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 3.0 steals and 2.5 blocks heading into the weekend. Kirkland's season-high was 41 points.
Q, from Blake in Springfield, Mo.: In NCAA basketball, does the clock stop after each score during the last minute of the second half?
A: Yes. It stops after made field goals in the last minute of the second half and of any extra periods, though not in the first half. Worth noting: No substitutions are allowed during these dead-ball situations.
Q, from Cathy in Mount Washington: For the first time, Xavier and Cincinnati competed in an NCAA Tournament first-round match in volleyball. Unfortunately, UC won! So far, UC has beaten XU in three major sports this year (women's basketball, volleyball and men's basketball). Do you think it would be possible for the men to ever get paired up to play each other in the Big Dance? Personally, I would love to see a rematch and see XU win the game that counts the most!
A: The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee has on occasion set up matchups it knows will get people talking, so UC-XU would seem to be a possibility someday. The key is that the teams' seedings correspond. The top seeds play No.16 seeds in the first round; No.2 seeds play 15s; and so on. So if, say, UC ended up a No.5 seed, XU would have to be a 12th seed for a first-round matchup to be possible.
More likely would be a meeting in, say, the second round. The closest the teams came to meeting came in 1997, when both teams played in the subregional in Auburn Hills, Mich. UC was a No.3 seed and XU a seventh seed. They would have met in the third round but each lost in the game prior: UC to No. 6 seed Iowa State 67-66, and XU to No. 2 UCLA 96-83.
To submit a question, please go to Cincinnati.Com..
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Q&A with Michael Perry and Neil Schmidt
