MILWAUKEE — Even when he wasn't able to play in games, sitting out last season as a partial academic qualifier, Dwyane Wade would help Marquette win by helping the Golden Eagles prepare for opponents in practice.

        He would play the role of a team's best player, and in reality, how many individuals were as good and as versatile as Wade?

        Naturally, there were great expectations this past fall when he got to suit up and begin making a name for himself outside of the Marquette program.

        Which didn't take long.

        Marquette started 5-0 with victories over Tennessee, Indiana and Gonzaga and the Great Alaska Shootout title. Wade averaged 20.8 points, 9.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists and was named MVP of the tournament.

        Today, he is the University of Cincinnati's problem.

        The No.4-ranked Bearcats, winners of 20 straight games, play at Marquette in the first of several key Conference USA matchups in the second half of league play. UC (8-0) leads Marquette and Charlotte by one game in the American Division.

        Wade, a 6-foot-4 sophomore, has created quite a buzz in the conference from the moment the season started.

        “He might be as good a pro prospect as there is in this league,” UC assistant coach Dan Peters said. “We haven't played (Memphis freshman) Dajuan Wagner, but Wade probably covers more ground in one dribble than anybody we've played this year. He's going to penetrate the ball. They're going to play off the bounce a lot. You've got to know where he is because he's going to score.”

        Wade leads the Golden Eagles in scoring (18.2), rebounding (7.0), assists (3.9), blocked shots (1.3) and steals (2.7). He has scored in double figures in 19 of the 20 games he has played and led the team in rebounding 11 times.

        “Dwyane Wade is an NBA player,” Saint Louis coach Lorenzo Romar said. “He's all over the floor. He can score in transition; he gets offensive rebounds; he's a great, great slasher to the basket.”

        UC senior Immanuel McElroy, considered by many the league's top defensive player, will have his hands full today.

        Peters said Wade is the best penetrating guard McElroy has had to defend. What makes Wade even more difficult to stop is his backcourt mate Cordell Henry, Marquette's much improved point guard, who is averaging 14 points and 3.4 assists and shooting 38.6 percent from 3-point range.

        Freshman guard Travis Diener comes off the bench and shoots 42.7 percent from 3-point range and has a 3.6-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.

        And don't forget: Marquette outrebounded UC 36-24 in the team's first meeting last season.

        The Golden Eagles, 11-0 at home this season, beat the Bearcats twice in 2001 and have won three of the last four meetings at the Bradley Center, site of today's game.

        UC leads Conference USA in scoring defense and scoring margin, with Marquette second. They are also two of the league's top three teams in field goal percentage defense and rebounding.

        The Golden Eagles lost the No.3 scorer in school history (Brian Wardle) but are more athletic overall than a year ago.

        That, of course, starts with Wade.

        “What Dwyane is learning is when things aren't going great for him offensively, he can still get things done defensively,” Marquette coach Tom Crean said. “To me, that's a great sign of a kid that's maturing into a pretty good player.

        “He does a lot of different things for us, out of instincts and now out of fundamentals. He's made great strides in all facets of the game, and I think he'll continue to because I think he really wants to be good. I think Dwyane is going to be a very special player over time.”

        Some think he already is.

UC must watch out for Wade

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