CINCINNATI, Ohio – Saint Francis U stood its ground against a larger, physical Cincinnati team in Friday's season opener, but missed opportunities were costly as the Bearcats prevailed, 52-37.
 
Coming off a 27-7 season, Cincinnati pulled away slowly in the first half, while the Red Flash offense struggled to find a spark.  The Bearcats led 29-17 at the intermission, but the Frankies came around in the second, cutting their deficit to nine, 41-32, with 7:11 to play.
 
"I thought we did a great job defending and, for the most part, keeping them to one shot," said third-year Flash coach Rob Krimmel.  "This is a big, physical team and that's some of what we're trying to do here.  I thought we held our own, for the most part.  Some of those shots are going to start to fall."
 
After Ben Millaud-Meunier (Montreal, Quebec/Vanier) hit a pair of free throws to pull the Flash to within single digits for the first time since the 7:11 mark of the first half, the Bearcats' Octavius Ellis and Gary Clark chipped in four points apiece to key a game-icing 11-to-5 run.
 
Ellis and Clark finished with 13 and 10 points, respectively to lead both squads.  SFU's Ronnie Drinnon (Jamestown, Ohio/Greenview) was close behind with nine points to go along with six rebounds.
 
Despite a disparity in size that clearly favored Cincinnati, the Red Flash put up a fight underneath.  The Bearcats, who were pegged to finish fourth in the American Athletic Conference, held a surprisingly slim 33-27 advantage on the boards.
 
Cincinnati turned 21 Saint Francis turnovers into 18 points, but the Flash was a bit more efficient in turning UC's 17 miscues into 16 points.
 
"I thought we could have done a better job taking care of the basketball ," said Krimmel.  "We had too many careless turnovers and in a place like this you can't have those turnovers and give them dunks and the opportunity to run downhill.  "
 
In the end it was cold shooting that stymied any chance of a Flash comeback. SFU shot just 30.0 percent (12-of-14) for the game, while the Bearcats converted at a 45.7 percent (21-of-46) clip.
 
"You've got to knock down a few more shots in a game like this – especially at the free throw line and threes," Krimmel said.  "We knew it was going to be a tough game.  I'm proud of the way our guys battled.  I thought we could have executed a little bit better in stretches, but its game #1 and we're getting better."
 
"Now, we've got to turn the page and get ready to play American on Monday."
 
Tipoff in Washington, D.C. is slated for 7:30 p.m.