• 9 p.m. today • TV: ESPN • Live TotalCast • UC: WLW (700) • XU: WKRC (550)

        Kenny Satterfield had seen the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout on television when he was in high school. Before last year's game, his teammates tried to tell him what to expect. None of that prepared the University of Cincinnati point guard for what he experienced against Xavier at the Cincinnati Gardens.

        “You hear about it, but I have never seen anything like that,” Satterfield said. “It's amazing. You don't know how it's going to be up close. Last year, it was crazy. You really couldn't hear anything the whole game. The fans were yelling for like 40 straight minutes. It surprised me a lot.”

        Satterfield came off the bench for eight points, five assists, two steals and four turnovers in then-No.1 UC's shocking 66-64 Shootout loss last year.

        Tonight against the Musketeers at Shoemaker Center, he will play a much greater role.

        The 6-foot-2 sophomore from New York is UC's leading scorer (18.4 ppg) and the only Bearcat to score in double figures every game so far. He is averaging 6.6 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 3.8 turnovers. One of the keys to the game is taking care of the ball, and Satterfield is in charge of making sure UC doesn't throw it away.

        “It's going to get crazy in here,” he said. “We have to try not to worry about pleasing the fans, and just play our type of basketball.

        “I've been ready for this. This is very exciting.”

        He and fellow guard Steve Logan already have tried explaining to the first-year play ers what the game will be like.

        Satterfield thinks it helps that several newcomers are coming off solid performances in Monday night's game against Oakland (Mich.). Freshman Field Williams (13 points), junior Antwan Jones (12) and junior Immanuel McElroy (10) all had career highs.

        “Everybody's confidence is really up,” Satterfield said. “Some of the guys, who don't get to play, played and played well. (This game) is something they've never seen before, and they're going to have to come out and be ready.”

        Xavier will use senior Maurice McAfee and freshman Lionel Chalmers at point guard. Satterfield faced both over the summer at Oak Hills High School.

        Satterfield also has become friends with XU junior Lloyd Price.

        “He's cool; he's a real funny guy,” Satterfield said. “He makes me laugh. We speak probably about once or twice a week. We've talked about this game since the summer. He says they're going to beat us; I say we're going to beat them. We both know it's going to be a war.”

        Said Price: “It's not only Kenny, (UC sophomore) Leonard Stokes is a good friend of mine. I really got to meet (Satterfield) because Leonard and Lionel are good friends from home. Leonard was always with Kenny and I was always with Lionel.

        “Some people just feel each other, know what I mean? He's a cool brother. We jelled. It was cool. We started talking and kept in contact.”

        Neil Schmidt contributed to this story.
       

Big stakes, big reward in Shootout SULLIVAN: Tickets few, hard to find Fanaticism, new events spring from UC-XU rivalry Satterfield pivotal for UC Who will be the rising star? Each team's keys to winning Who's got the edge? Highlights of recent Shootouts Holley leaves UC women's team UC's Ruffin named AP All-American

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