With a few days of much-needed rest under the belt, the eighth-ranked Cincinnati Bearcats return to work Friday afternoon against Southern Methodist in an American Athletic Conference Tournament quarterfinal at the Amway Center in Orlando, Fla.
As the regular-season champion, Cincinnati comes into the tournament with the top overall seed. SMU, the No. 9 seed, advanced with an 80-73 victory over No. 8 UConn on Thursday.
The Bearcats are a lock for the 68-team NCAA Tournament field, but they still have plenty of motivation to make a strong showing in the conference tournament.
"It's important because of all the work we've put in," said Cincinnati senior forward Gary Clark, the AAC Player of the Year.