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SportsTuesday, November 3

NKU, Cincinnati and Xavier all open the college basketball season with wins

The 5AM Covington teamFrom Tuesday’s edition · 1 min read · 3 sources

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If you follow the , they opened 2026-27 with a win: Northern Kentucky beat UTEP 84-76 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Freshman guard Willie Foster scored 24 points, senior forward Noah Pagotto had 19, and senior guard Eric Acker added 16 points with a team-high five assists.

Three area teams won their season openers Monday

  • American53
    Cincinnati79
    Final
  • Mount St. Mary's52
    Xavier97
    Final
  • UTEP76
    Northern Kentucky84
    FinalPlayed in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Sources: WLWT, WKRC

Closer to the river, Cincinnati beat American 79-53 in Jerrod Calhoun's debut as Bearcats head coach. The Enquirer counts it as career win No. 298 and his first at his alma mater. The Bearcats led 35-33 at the half, then outscored American by 24 in the second half, per the AP. Xavier routed Mount St. Mary's 97-52.

  • Bearcats: seven straight season openers won, eight straight home openers
  • Rebounds: Cincinnati 48, American 32
  • Xavier shot 50 percent; Mount St. Mary's shot 29 percent
  • Next up: Cincinnati hosts Green Bay on Thursday

Foster scored 24 for NKU, more than Xavier's and Cincinnati's top scorers

Sources: WLWT, WKRC

View as table
Value
Foster, NKU24 pts
Westry, Xavier17 pts
Collins, Cincinnati13 pts
Tejada, Cincinnati13 pts

Sources: WLWT, Cincinnati Enquirer, WKRC

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