The Jerrod Calhoun era has officially begun, and so far, things are off to a pretty good start as the Bearcats rolled out wins against American University (79-53) and Green Bay (81-64). 

While things haven’t been completely perfect, there is still plenty of good to take into the rest of the non-conference slate. 

MJ Collins Jr. Was A Needed Addition

While several players will go through their hot and cold days in the early parts of the season, the summer addition of Collins has been elite so far. 

So far through two games, Collins tallied 27 points on a 50% field goal rate, along with six steals, six assists and two turnovers. 

Collins is now a three-time transfer, originally starting at Virginia Tech, then moving to Vanderbilt before landing with Calhoun at Utah State. In Collins’ sole season with the Aggies, Collins averaged 17.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists, all while doing so on a neat 48.7% mark from the field. 

No. 2: Consistent Offense

Last season, Utah State finished as the nation’s 30th-most efficient offense.

Cincinnati on the other hand all the way down at 238th in the country. So far this season, UC ranks 111th. While there, of course, will be plenty of time for things to get better or worse but so far from most aspects this is an offense that will be able to tally more than nine Big 12 wins. 

Solid Defense So Far

Last season, in non-conference play, the Bearcats totaled an 8-5 record. Some of those results include a 74-64 win against Georgia State, a 74-62 win against Dayton and a gut-wrenching 64-56 loss to Eastern Michigan.  

So while two games against Green Bay and American may not feel like the most stifling competition Cincinnati faces this season, that doesn’t mean there aren’t noticeable improvements. One of them is the opposition field goal rate. Through the opening two games, the Bearcats have allowed just a 37.3% field goal rate. 

Final Thoughts

The tests will only get tougher for Calhoun’s team in an early-season schedule that includes Minnesota, Georgia, Boston College, Xavier and Clemson.

All of these are great litmus tests for a team looking for their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2019.

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