Let's talk about Charlie Coles for a minute. Let's talk about how funny he is in the postgame pressers. Let's talk about how amusing he is, even after his Miami squad fell 63-59 to No. 19 Cincinnati.

 

Mick Cronin knows it. After Coles left the podium to plenty of laughter from the assembled media, Cronin entered the room and said he wasn't going to try to compete with Coles in the arena of news conference delightfulness. He knew Coles would dominate him.

 

Here's Coles talking about Miami's 64-42 loss to Temple on Tuesday.

 

"Temple just took us apart. I'm going to write a $50 check out to Miami. I know it cost more than that, but just say, 'This is for last Tuesday. I really wasn't at the game. I'm sorry I missed the game. I get paid for working. Here's $50."

 

And then some sneaky former TV guy who was sitting next to me (not Dan Hoard) said to me, "Watch this," and proceeded to ask Coles if he'd ever played against a UC team that only had committed 10 fouls on his RedHawks. Then, he nudged me in the ribs.

 

Said Coles as he eyed on the box score: "Well, let's see. Let's look at the free throws. They shot 32. We shot 3. I'll play along with you. No, I've never played against a UC team that was as timid as this one was. Let's leave it at that."

 

He was certainly the highlight of the night, and it's why Coles should be a national treasure.

 

--The Bearcats full-court press definitely hurt Miami, which committed 14 turnovers.

 

"The first half, we were a little passive," said Miami guard Kenny Hayes, who led both teams with 19 points on 7 of 13 shooting. "We were a little timid instead of just blowing straight past it. When you went past them, the zone was kind of soft. If you took care of the ball, you'd be OK. The second half, we did a pretty good job in the press-break and got some easy looks at the basket."

 

The only problem with the press was that UC didn't capitalize on the turnovers it caused. Despite the eight steals - including three from Lance Stephenson, who led the Bearcats with 17 points and eight rebounds - the Bearcats only managed 13 points off turnovers (the same total as the RedHawks) and eight fast-break points (compared to six from Miami).

 

"We didn't give up layups, we only gave up one basket off our press, and we were able to wear them down a little bit," Cronin said. "We got some key steals, but we didn't convert layups. Cash and Dion had some layups they didn't convert."

 

Speaking of Cashmere Wright, he played well down the stretch despite not starting for the first time this season. He finished with 12 points on 4 of 8 shooting.

 

"I just came in and did whatever the defense gave me and played with that," Wright said. "They let me go to the hole. I kept making shots, and they kept giving it to me. It really doesn't matter who starts. At the end of the day if we win, it doesn't matter."

 

--Cronin said Lance Stephenson took an elbow to the eye and that he needed two stitches after the game. He expects Stephenson to play vs. Xavier on Sunday.

 

Said Miami forward Nick Winbush: "Lance Stephenson and Cashmere are two really good players. They might be freshmen, but they don't play like freshmen. We had a big emphasis on guarding them. I didn't think they necessarily killed us. Some other stuff killed us. I mean, yeah, they kind of killed us. They're two really good players.