Cincinnati's defense struggled to contain the Iowa State offense, but managed to hang with the Cyclones to the very end. Unfortunately, they couldn't find a last-second bucket.
Cincinnati gave it all they could, but it simply wasn't enough to takedown the No. 11 team in the country. The Bearcats defense, which has been only allowed an average of 59.4 points per game, was exposed by Iowa State's offensive firepower to the tune of 81 points. The Bearcats showed resiliency and kept pace for much of the game, but Cincinnati ultimately fell short at the end in the 81-79 loss at Fifth Third Arena.