Yancy Gates scored 14 of his 16 points in the first half Tuesday night, and Cincinnati held off a late Winthrop run for a 74-57 victory in its final nonconference game before getting into Big East play.
Playing its first game since dropping out of the Top 25, Cincinnati (8-3) pulled ahead by 19 points with the help of Gates' big first half, then held on despite a sloppy showing down the stretch. The Bearcats turned the ball over 11 times in the second half.
Winthrop (5-6) got within 58-49 with 7:43 to go, but stalled there. Charles Corbin led Winthrop with 12 points. The Eagles failed to reach the 60-point mark for the seventh time.
Gates, a 6-foot-9 center, played only 4 minutes in a win over Lipscomb on Saturday because coach Mick Cronin was upset with his effort. Gates wasn't in the starting lineup, but he had seven points during a 12-0 run that put the Bearcats up 24-11.
