By Bill Koch
The Cincinnati Enquirer

From the first time the University of Cincinnati Bearcats walked onto the floor in November to play an exhibition game, coach Bob Huggins has lamented their lack of rebounding ability.

They had the size and the athleticism to be a good rebounding team, he said, but for some reason those elements didn't translate into rebounding prowess.

But the Bearcats have been quietly improving. In their last four games, they've outrebounded their opponents by an average margin of 8.2. They produced their best rebounding effort of the season Wednesday against Marquette, besting the Golden Eagles by nine boards.

The 10th-ranked Bearcats (12-0, 3-0 Conference USA) play Texas Christian (6-8, 2-1) at 7:05 p.m. at Fifth Third Arena. About 800 tickets remained as of Friday afternoon.

Forward Armein Kirkland, who has missed the last two games with a sprained left knee, is not expected to play tonight.

UC, which is outrebounding its opponents by 4.4 per game for the season, is beginning to get Huggins' message.

"People are just crashing the boards, getting to their spots," said center Kareem Johnson, who's averaging seven rebounds over his last three games.

"I think we're getting better," UC coach Bob Huggins said. "We're not very consistent at it, but we're getting better."

Huggins was especially adamant about the importance of rebounding before the Marquette game. The Golden Eagles had outrebounded UC by a combined 73-45 in their last two games, both of which were won by Marquette.

Reserve forward Eric Hicks has been UC's most consistent rebounder, averaging 6.2 per game, second behind Jason Maxiell's 7.8, even though he plays only 18.6 minutes a game.

The 6-7 sophomore has made rebounding - especially offensive rebounding - his trademark. He's coming off the best game of his career, having scored 15 points with 10 rebounds against Marquette.

"I just find a way to get to the ball," Hicks said. "That's how I score most of the time. That's an easy way of scoring. The points are there. It's up to somebody to get them, and I'm going to get them."

Besides, he said, few things in basketball are more satisfying than snatching a rebound and slamming it home for two points.

"Any time I get a dunk it's fun," Hicks said.

The Bearcats, who have risen to No.10 in the RPI, face a TCU team tonight they'll be expected to beat handily. This game could be a challenge psychologically, though, sandwiched between the Marquette game and next Wednesday's showdown at No.8 Louisville.

But the UC players say they understand they have to focus on TCU first. "If we come out here and act like we don't want to play, we're going to run," Hicks said before practice Friday.

No. 10 UC vs. TCU

Tipoff: 7:05 p.m. today, Fifth Third Arena (13,176).

Records: UC 12-0 (3-0 Conference USA), TCU 6-8 (2-1).

Radio: WLW-AM (700).

TV: Ch. 19.

Series: UC leads 3-0.

Line: UC by 27.

UC

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
James White	So.	6-7	7.9
Jason Maxiell	Jr.	6-7	14.6
Kareem Johnson	Sr.	6-7	4.9
Field Williams	Sr.	6-3	13.5
Nick Williams	Jr.	6-4	8.8

Coach: Bob Huggins (361-112, 15th season; 529-184 overall).

TCU

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
Chudi Chinweze	So.	6-6	11.1
Femi Ibikunle	Jr.	6-10	3.5
Nucleus Smith	Sr.	6-2	7.1
Corey Santee	Jr.	6-3	12.8
Marcus Shropshire	Jr.	6-0	11.9

Coach: Neil Dougherty (15-27,

second season; same overall).

E-mail bkoch@enquirer.com