By Bill Koch
The Cincinnati Enquirer

HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Keep an eye on the University of Cincinnati Bearcats this afternoon. You're likely to learn a lot about their resilience.

Three days after collapsing in the second half and absorbing a 27-point loss to No. 5 Louisville, their first defeat of the season, the sixth-ranked Bearcats are back on the road today at 2:04 p.m. against a Southern Miss team that's 6-0 at home this year in Reed Green Coliseum.

The Golden Eagles own a three-point win over Memphis and a 22-point win over Marquette.

Southern Miss (9-6, 2-2 Conference USA) doesn't stir the juices the way Louisville did. There's no national TV for this game. But it's an important game for UC (13-1, 4-1) as it attempts to recover from the debacle of Wednesday night.

"We know it's not going to be easy," UC forward Jason Maxiell said. "They've got the home-court advantage. We've got to come out and play."

UC point guard Nick Williams, who missed practice Thursday with a sprained ankle, is expected to play.

The Bearcats remember what happened last season when they were upset by Southern Miss 63-61 in the first round of the C-USA Tournament in Louisville.

"It's the same group that beat us a year ago," UC coach Bob Huggins said. "They make everything hard."

The Golden Eagles prefer to slow the pace of the game, much the same way Saint Louis does against the Bearcats.

And Southern Miss has one of the best post players in the country in 6-foot-9 senior Charles Gaines, the leading rebounder in the conference with 9.8 per game. He also averages 15.5 points.

Gaines scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds last year in the Golden Eagles' win over the Bearcats, a victory that's sure to give the Southern Miss players confidence.

"The mystique of playing Cincinnati and their toughness, with what they're doing to a lot of teams, we can still believe through all of that that we have a chance to win simply because we were able to beat them in the tournament," Southern Miss coach James Green said.

"But that probably adds a little fuel to their fire. They'll probably turn it up a notch."

While UC has had to go on the road twice this week, the Golden Eagles have been sitting at home since Jan. 16 preparing for this game.

"We've been able to practice all week long knowing that they're coming in," Green said.

Still, this is a team the Bearcats will be expected to beat. Countering the Golden Eagles' wins over Memphis and Marquette is a 50-point loss to Murray State. Southern Miss also lost to Louisville 76-42.

Both losses came against teams that hurt Southern Miss with their full-court pressure. The Golden Eagles committed 22 turnovers against Louisville, 19 against Murray State, indications that they may be susceptible to UC's pressure.

Over the past eight years, UC has won its next game following a loss by an average margin of 15.2 points. A similar result today could go a long way toward removing some of the bitter taste that still lingers from the loss at Louisville.

No. 6 UC at Southern Miss

Tipoff: 2:04 p.m. today, Reed Green Coliseum (8,095), Hattiesburg, Miss.

Records: UC 13-1 (4-1 Conference USA), Southern Miss 9-6 (2-2).

TV: Ch. 19. Radio: WLW-AM (700).

Line: Cincinnati by 13 1/2.

Series: UC leads 15-13.

CINCINNATI

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
James White	So.	6-7	9.1
Jason Maxiell	Jr.	6-7	14.6
Kareem Johnson	Sr.	6-7	4.6
Field Williams	Sr.	6-4	13.1
Nick Williams	Jr.	6-4	8.1

Coach: Bob Huggins (362-113, 15th season; 530-185 overall).

SOUTHERN MISS

Player	Yr.	Ht.	PPG
Greg Johnson	Sr.	6-9	9.6
Clement Carter	Sr.	6-4	9.3
Charles Gaines	Sr.	6-9	15.5
Dante Stiggers	Jr.	6-3	4.7
David Haywood	Jr.	6-4	8.3

Coach: James Green (119-102, eighth season, same overall).

---

E-mail bkoch@enquirer.com