Big 12 Media Day Video, Reactions, and Notes

There is a lot of hype and excitement around Cincinnati Men's Basketball as we approach the beginning of the 2024/25 college basketball season.

The Bearcats were picked 6th in the preseason conference coaches poll and enter the season with a #20 ranking in the preseason AP poll. 

Cincinnati returns six of their top eight from last season and added seven new faces during the offseason. 

Arrinten Page (USC) was brought in to shore up front court depth, while Connor Hickman (Bradley) was added to provide more depth at both the 1 and 2, as well as added shooting on the perimeter.

Four-star forwards Tyler Betsey and Tyler McKinley were brought in through the high school ranks, while Halvine Dzellat was a late addition from the France National Team to provide front court depth.

McKinley was recently announced as being out for the season following a knee injury. 

With so much depth, Wes Miller will be tasked with trying to find the right combination of lineups, as well as minute distribution.

"I think if you're sitting up here as a coach early in the year and the challenge is how to find the right combinations and figure out the right minute distributions and right rotations, and the challenge of that is because you have so much depth, I think that's where you want to be as a program and as a coach," Miller told media on Wednesday.

The highlight of the transfer additions was former five-star Texas transfer Dillon Mitchell.

Mitchell had an outstanding showing in his first appearance as a Bearcat, contributing 12 points, 7 rebounds, on a perfect 6-of-6 finish in an 80-62 charity exhibition win over Ohio State.

Wes Miller discussed the impact that Mitchell can have on the team this season.

"We're always looking for someone who aligns with what we're about, who we are, and how we play. With Dillon, that was there." Miller continued. "We thought Dillon fit in so well (with our returning players) because he could do so many different things and his versatility allowed him to play so many different spots on both sides of the court."

With preseason hype comes expectations. 

While the Bearcats are receiving a lot of attention nationally for the roster that they return, that hasn't fazed Wes Miler or his players.

"I've never cared about when you're slighted with preseason rankings or when you're picked highly or nationally. None of that has ever mattered to me one bit," Said Miller. " I try to explain that to our team and that's how I feel this year. The one thing I will say, is it's great for our university, our program, our players, and fans."

Starting forward Simas Lukosius echoed the words of his coach when asked the same question.

"We know from last year that all of the high moments are just temporary. Coach always talks to us about responding and we don't only respond to the bad situations. We respond to the good  moments as well. He's been doing a great job at making sure that our main goal is just working on our games and just keep getting better."

"We aren't paying too much attention to what people think about us."

The players have become a reflection of Wes Miller and his core values when it comes to the culture within his program. In the day and age of NIL and the transfer portal, it has become more difficult to build a program.

Simas Lukosius credits Miller for the retention of last season's roster and personality of this season's team as well as finding the right guys in the transfer portal.

"My first conversation with him was about looking for a winning culture and being apart of a locker room that has the same values as me. He was very happy about that because that's exactly what he's looking for. I think that he really picks the guys that he recruits very well because all of them are about the same thing."

 The highest rated recruit of Miller's 2024 class was 6-foot-9 forward Tyler Betsey.

Betsey was rated the 47th best prospect in the country coming out of high school and has consistently shown his shooting ability during preseason workouts as well as finishing with 7 points in the 80-62 exhibition win over Ohio State.

How good can Betsey be?

"Here's a young man we just have a great deal of confidence in and we think can impact our team this year," Miller told media. " Very few freshmen were able to make an impact in this league (last year) and the ones that could are really special. I think Tyler is special like that. I think he has the ability, the opportunities, for him to get out there and play meaningful minutes."

After finishing season one with a conference record of 7-11, as well as an overall record of 22-15, Miller feels like his squad is better prepared in year two for a 20-game league schedule. 

"You knew sitting up here a year ago you're going into the best league in America, but experiencing it is something completely different."

"You gain a little bit of wisdom as you go through any experience. The first thing I'd say about last year's experience is what an awesome experience to coach in this league. I mean, it is awesome. It's hard. Every single night you're playing against old players, talented players, smart players, and elite coaching. As difficult and challenging as that is, it's awesome because it really helps you elevate yourself as a coach, it helps you elevate your program and the things that you do and the way that you do them."

At the end of the day, experience and preparation will be the two things that help Miller, his players, and staff heading into the program's second year as members of the Big 12. 

"We believe in trying to grow and improve every day. I'm probably not very different than most coaches that will sit up here and talk to you today. When you go through the year that we went through last year in this league, you take notes, you learn, and you try to adjust and apply the things that you learned differently to the next year.'

Cincinnati will begin preparation for the Big 12 on Monday November 4th when they welcome Arkansas - Pine Bluff to Fifth Third Arena. 

Videos from Big 12 Media Day: