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Posted at 2:00 PM EST.

7:00 PM EST. It's down to crunch time in college hoops, and so this is the time of year we must dig a little deeper to find out who's in, who's out and who has something to play for the rest of the way. For Cincinnati, a ticket to the Big Dance is in the mail, as the #5 ranked Bearcats have built an impressive resume that includes a current 16-game winning streak and a 12-0 record in AAC play. We're not here to discount what the Bearcats have done this season, but for this team, the gold is at the end of the NCAA Tournament rainbow. Regardless of what happens over their next six games, and in the AAC Tournament, the Bearcats are going dancing. There is no need for Cincy to go all out every play the rest of the way.

Unlike their opponent tonight, Houston is very much on the bubble and supremely motivated to get a signature win over a top-five school. These two teams played once already this season with the Cougars falling by double-digits, but that final score is very misleading. Houston had a 33-15 lead up in Cincinnati, but could not hang on. Winning on the road is so hard in college hoops, even when you have a nearly 20-point advantage. Since that disappointing collapse, the Cougars have responded with three straight wins. Houston brings the 23rd ranked scoring defense and the 7th best field goal percentage to the Health and PE Arena tonight where it is undefeated in AAC play this season. At the end of the day, this game just means more to the Cougars, who know they can hang with the class of the conference, as they proved just over two weeks ago. This time, they won't let the Bearcats off the hook. Houston outright is the play.

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