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The Cincinnati Bearcats and Ohio State Buckeyes, the two largest universities in Ohio by enrollment, will renew their hardwood rivalry in an unusual setting: outdoors. The exhibition game is scheduled for October 7 at 3 p.m. at the Lindner Tennis Center in Mason, as part of the CareSource Invitational.
Spectators in the grandstand will see nets at both ends of the court, a change from the single large net typically used during the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament each August. The Xavier Musketeers and Dayton Flyers will play the second game at 5:30 p.m. If weather interferes, the games will be moved to the University of Dayton Arena.
New UC head coach Jerrod Calhoun plans to use a deep rotation. "We'll probably play 12-13 players," Calhoun said. "It's a chance for us to get a little dry run and see where we're at. I think (the event) is really, really neat. I hope we sell a lot of tickets and get a lot of Bearcats fans there." Calhoun anticipates a challenging shooting environment, citing a conversation with Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington, whose team recently beat Virginia at an outdoor tennis facility in Charleston, South Carolina, but struggled with sun glare. Early forecasts predict sunny skies and temperatures in the lower 80s, so coaches may need sunglasses.
UC last faced Ohio State in an exhibition in October 2024 at Fifth Third Arena, winning 80-62. That victory was a highlight of a 19-16 season under Wes Miller that began with high expectations but saw the team fall out of the polls by January. In regular-season play, Ohio State has won five straight against UC, most recently in the 2022 Maui Invitational. Before 2006, the teams had not met since 1962, when the Bearcats defeated the Buckeyes for their second consecutive national championship.
Tickets for the CareSource Invitational are on sale now. The event is designed to normalize mental health conversations and raise funds for nonprofit mental health and suicide prevention organizations.
Scouting the Bearcats
Cincinnati enters the exhibition with a new coaching staff and a revamped roster. Calhoun, in his first year at UC, has a career record of 297-159 over five seasons in Division II and nine in Division I. The Bearcats are coming off an 18-15 season and a 9-9 mark in the Big 12. Under former coach Wes Miller, UC averaged 73.1 points per game on offense and allowed 67.6 points per game on defense.
Projected starters for the Bearcats include Tylen Riley (G, 6'2", 15 ppg), Myles Colvin (G, 6'5", 11.6 ppg), Adlan Elamin (F, 6'10", 6.7 ppg), Jayden Hastings (C, 6'10", 6.7 ppg), and Tyler Tejada (F, 6'9", 17.7 ppg). Elamin, a transfer from Utah State, has pro potential, while Colvin (Wake Forest) boasts incredible leaping ability and savvy. Tejada (Towson) is a sharpshooter, and Akai Fleming (Georgia Tech) has improved immensely. MJ Collins remains ineligible as his college future is in the hands of lawyers and judges.
Calhoun has emphasized team bonding, as evidenced by the Bearcats' 2-0 showing in the Baha Mar Summer Hoops Classic. In a 47-point win over Victoria on August 4, seven players scored in double figures. The next day, in a 41-point rout of Calgary, 11 players logged double-digit minutes, with four reaching double figures. Calhoun's "We Over Me" mantra surrounds Fifth Third Arena, and his teams often feature position-less players making even contributions.
Scouting the Buckeyes
Ohio State is projected as a Top 25 team by some outlets after a 21-13 season and a 12-8 finish in the Big Ten. Head coach Jake Diebler is in his third season with a 44-30 record. The Buckeyes averaged 79.3 points per game on offense and allowed 72.6 points per game on defense in 2025-26.
Projected starters for Ohio State include Justin Pippen (G, 6'4", 14.2 ppg), John Mobley Jr. (G, 6'2", 15.7 ppg), Anthony Thompson (F, 6'9", 24.9 ppg in high school), Amare Bynum (F, 6'8", 9.7 ppg), and Josh Ojianwuna (C, 6'10", 7.4 ppg). Mobley withdrew from the NBA draft and is a 41% 3-point shooter. Pippen, a Cal transfer, is the son of Naismith Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen. Thompson is from Lebanon and once played against former UC Bearcat Tyler McKinley on the local prep circuit. Ojianwuna, a Baylor transfer, has faced UC before.
Keys to the Exhibition
1. Cincinnati must avoid injuries. The afternoon start time is due to the portable floor potentially developing condensation in the evening, and no one wants to see players slip and fall in an exhibition.
2. Team bonding must continue as it did in the Bahamas. The Bearcats went 2-0 in the Baha Mar Summer Hoops Classic, but the competition from the two Canadian teams was nothing like what UC will see from Ohio State.
3. Fans must understand the meaning of an exhibition. After Wes Miller's crew started 2024 with an exhibition win over Ohio State, it went to Ann Arbor and beat eventual national champion Michigan 100-98. A week later, UC was routed by Arkansas 89-61. Before Mick Cronin's final season, UC lost an exhibition to Carleton of Canada. The 1991-92 Final Four team under Bob Huggins lost to Athletes In Action after blowing a 20-point lead. These games don't count in the standings.
UC guard Akai Fleming said, "Every game we play, we're going to take it serious like it's a Final Four game." Guard Trevian Carson added, "It's just another game on the schedule. We're fixin' to go hoop."
Game Details
Tip: 3 p.m. October 7 at Lindner Tennis Center in Mason (capacity 12,000)
TV/Radio: TBD (likely gobearcats.com)
Series: Ohio State leads non-exhibitions 42-39
Originally reported by yahoo.