Blue Demons manage some hope if not a victory

When Cincinnati forward Alvin Mitchell sank the second of 2 free throws to give Cincinnati a 54-39 lead with 7:07 remaining in Saturday's Big East contest, you could hear a pin drop at Allstate Arena as a few disgruntled DePaul fans started making their way to the exits.

When guard Will Walker sank the second of 2 free throws with 1:22 remaining to cap a dizzying 16-2 run and move the Blue Demons within a point of tying things up, you could hardly hear yourself think above the din of the nearly 8,000 remaining fans.

It was just like the good old days in Rosemont.

The perfect capper to DePaul's comeback would have been Walker sinking a go-ahead 3-pointer in the final minute, but his open shot rimmed in and out and the Bearcats sank their free throws down the stretch to hold on for a 59-55 victory to keep DePaul winless in the Big East.

"We really felt like we were going to get the win," said Walker, who led the Demons with 17 points on 4-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc. "The bench was really into it; everyone was into it. We haven't really had that the last few games.

"Hopefully next time it will go in."

After a first half dominated by Bearcats guard Deonta Vaughn's 5-for-6 performance from 3-point land, it looked like more of the same old, same old for DePaul (8-10, 0-5), who trailed 36-25 at intermission.

But thanks to an energized and ever-changing defense, one that held Vaughn (game-high 18 points) to just a pair of free throws in the final 20 minutes, the Demons were able to throw Cincinnati (12-6, 2-3) off its game and into turnover land late as it watched its lead slip away.

"We slid out with a 'W,'" a relieved Bearcats coach Mick Cronin said. "You can't expect to just walk to the finish line for a win on the road in the Big East Conference."

Dar Tucker and Mac Koshwal had 15 points apiece for the Blue Demons, but Koshwal had a couple of rough moments, the second of which came late in the game when he committed a key turnover.

"God bless Mac Koshwal, there's not a better kid, but every once in awhile he gets to playing so fast," DePaul coach Jerry Wainwright said. "We just have to settle down a little more."

They wouldn't call Saturday's performance a moral victory, but to a man, the Blue Demons sensed it was a big step forward.

"We probably played, in terms of going from practice to game, the best we have in several weeks," Wainwright said.