By Bill Koch
When I watch David DeJulius play, I'm reminded of Deonta Vaughn, who played on Mick Cronin’s first UC team in 2006-07 when the program was in the initial stages of a massive rebuilding project in the wake of Bob Huggins’ dismissal in 2005.
Like Vaughn, the 6-foot DeJulius is undersized, has a knack for drawing fouls, is an excellent free throw shooter, and a reliable 3-point shooter. Also like Vaughn, he's often been called on to carry the offensive load on a team that's often outmanned.
On Sunday afternoon, when UC honors DeJulius on the occasion of his final game at Fifth Third Arena, he deserves a warm and sustained ovation from the crowd for what he’s contributed to the Bearcats during the last three years. He has scored 1,091 points at UC, ranking him 41st in school history, and is the 35th UC player to reach the 1,000-point milestone in three years or fewer. This year, he ranks second on the team in scoring with 14.6 points per game, and first in assists with 5.2 per game.
DeJulius, Jeremiah Davenport (1,028 points), and Mika Adams-Woods (898 points) have been the mainstays of the UC program for the past three years. Sadly, none of them has been able to play in an NCAA Tournament and probably won’t again this year unless the Bearcats stage an upset and win the American Athletic Conference tournament next week, although Davenport and Adams-Woods have another year of eligibility remaining, if they choose to use it.
In that trio, I see the same determination and dedication that I saw when I covered Cronin’s first UC team and watched Vaughn, Marcus Sikes, Marvin Gentry, John Williamson, and Jamual Warren play with everything they had against overwhelming odds in the Big East.
When I called the players from Cronin's first team for my 2018 book, “The Forgotten Bearcats,” I wasn’t sure how willing they’d be to relive what had to be a terribly difficult year, but they were all eager to talk about it, happy that someone remembered the contributions they made during a difficult time in the program’s storied history.
At the time, the Bearcats were in the midst of a string of nine straight NCAA Tournament appearances that ended during the 2018-19 season.
“When I watch them play, I feel like that’s me," Warren said. "Not to say that I made this, or I built this, I’m not like that, not by myself. But I was a key part to building that program…When I watch them now, I feel that’s what we were trying to build.”
"The program where it is now," Gentry said, "I think we laid the foundation of hard work, and paved the way for the teams that were after us to get them to where Cincinnati basketball is now. I still feel like I'm a part of the team."
It'll be fitting if DeJulius, Davenport and Adams-Woods are able to experience the same feeling someday soon when they watch the rebuilt Bearcats play in the NCAA Tournament. They've earned it.
When I watch David DeJulius play, I'm reminded of Deonta Vaughn, who played on Mick Cronin’s first UC team in 2006-07 when the program was in the initial stages of a massive rebuilding project in the wake of Bob Huggins’ dismissal in 2005.
Like Vaughn, the 6-foot DeJulius is undersized, has a knack for drawing fouls, is an excellent free throw shooter, and a reliable 3-point shooter. Also like Vaughn, he's often been called on to carry the offensive load on a team that's often outmanned.
On Sunday afternoon, when UC honors DeJulius on the occasion of his final game at Fifth Third Arena, he deserves a warm and sustained ovation from the crowd for what he’s contributed to the Bearcats during the last three years. He has scored 1,091 points at UC, ranking him 41st in school history, and is the 35th UC player to reach the 1,000-point milestone in three years or fewer. This year, he ranks second on the team in scoring with 14.6 points per game, and first in assists with 5.2 per game.
DeJulius, Jeremiah Davenport (1,028 points), and Mika Adams-Woods (898 points) have been the mainstays of the UC program for the past three years. Sadly, none of them has been able to play in an NCAA Tournament and probably won’t again this year unless the Bearcats stage an upset and win the American Athletic Conference tournament next week, although Davenport and Adams-Woods have another year of eligibility remaining, if they choose to use it.
In that trio, I see the same determination and dedication that I saw when I covered Cronin’s first UC team and watched Vaughn, Marcus Sikes, Marvin Gentry, John Williamson, and Jamual Warren play with everything they had against overwhelming odds in the Big East.
When I called the players from Cronin's first team for my 2018 book, “The Forgotten Bearcats,” I wasn’t sure how willing they’d be to relive what had to be a terribly difficult year, but they were all eager to talk about it, happy that someone remembered the contributions they made during a difficult time in the program’s storied history.
At the time, the Bearcats were in the midst of a string of nine straight NCAA Tournament appearances that ended during the 2018-19 season.
“When I watch them play, I feel like that’s me," Warren said. "Not to say that I made this, or I built this, I’m not like that, not by myself. But I was a key part to building that program…When I watch them now, I feel that’s what we were trying to build.”
"The program where it is now," Gentry said, "I think we laid the foundation of hard work, and paved the way for the teams that were after us to get them to where Cincinnati basketball is now. I still feel like I'm a part of the team."
It'll be fitting if DeJulius, Davenport and Adams-Woods are able to experience the same feeling someday soon when they watch the rebuilt Bearcats play in the NCAA Tournament. They've earned it.
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