CINCINNATI – Sean Kilpatrick scored a career-high 29 points on Sunday, hitting eight shots from behind the arc, and No. 24 Cincinnati dominated from the outset Sunday of a 93-39 victory over North Carolina A&T.
The Bearcats (3-0) opened with a 14-point run that featured four 3s by Kilpatrick, who got wide-open shots all around the arc. Cincinnati's lead never slipped below double digits.
Kilpatrick had 21 points in the opening half — six under his previous high — and matched his career best with six 3-pointers before the intermission. He made more shots from beyond the arc than the Aggies (1-3) did overall in the half — NC A&T was 4 of 30.
North Carolina A&T shot only 15 percent from the field (10 of 66) with 20 turnovers. Lamont Middleton led the Aggies with 11 points.
Kilpatrick had a big game all-around, getting seven rebounds and five assists in 26 minutes. The junior guard has 49 points in the last two games.
Kilpatrick set a career high for scoring on his eighth 3-pointer with 10:26 left, completing a 16-0 run for a 68-24 lead. At that point, the Aggies had only seven field goals combined.
The only blemish for Cincinnati was free throw shooting. The Bearcats came in averaging 59.6 percent from the line and missed 11 of their first 14. The crowd of 5,582 cheered when Cashmere Wright made a free throw that ended a streak of seven straight misses in the second half.
NC A&T finished 9 of 23 on free throws.
The Aggies repeatedly shot air balls over outstretched arms, missing their first 10 shots overall. They didn't get their first field goal until Lamont Middleton scored at the 12:37 mark, making it 17-3. Six of their shots were swatted away in the first half.
North Carolina A&T also had trouble holding onto the ball against Cincinnati's extended man-to-man defense. The Aggies had 12 turnovers while falling behind 47-16 at halftime.
The Bearcats are using their early games to build a 10-man-deep bench for Big East play. Coach Mick Cronin used his reserves a lot during an 80-57 win over Tennessee-Martin and a 102-60 win over Mississippi Valley State, and quickly got some of his reserve in against the Aggies.
No matter who was on the floor, Cincinnati's defense was too much for the Aggies, who couldn't score more than five points in a row.
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Follow Joe Kay on Twitter: http://twitter.com/apjoekay
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