For UC basketball fans, it was just another unexpected blow to a basketball program steeped in tradition, but steeper in unforeseen endings since the Bearcats won back-to-back NCAA titles in 1960 and 1961.

The shocking 10-point loss to Saint Louis, a team they had beaten by 43 points less than a week earlier, was symptomatic of the dramatic turn of events.

Martin, expected to be named the College Player of the Year and the first pick of the NBA draft in June, had broken his leg and torn ligaments in his ankle three minutes into Thursday's game. The 6-foot-9 center had suffered collegiate careerus interruptus, at the most untimely of moments.

It even poked a hole in the seemingly unflappable intensity of coach Bob Huggins.

"My frustration is for them," Huggins said. "I think I'm going to be able to do this for a lot longer if I so choose. And we'll have more good teams. This was their chance. You just have very few chances in life to be special."

At 28-2 going into Thursday's game and ranked No. 1 in the country, the Bearcats appeared to be a lock for the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Regional, beginning in the friendly confines of Cleveland's Gund Arena. That ended when the buzzer sounded with their first ever loss in the first round of the Conference USA Tournament.

"I personally think it's a travesty if they don't give these kids their due," Huggins said. "How can you be ranked first in the country the majority of the year? Look around the country. Look at everybody who's lost."

Indeed, six of the top 12 teams -- Cincinnati, Ohio State, Syracuse, Kentucky, Florida and Tennessee -- lost during a 24-hour period Thursday to Friday, scrambling the bracket perspective even more.

After a surprisingly live practice and some 48 hours to stew over the loss of Martin and what it means to the team heading into the tournament, Huggins re-evaluated the situation.

Nonetheless, the 28-3 Bearcats of today, with Kenyon Martin's leg in a cast, are far less daunting, thus the No. 2 seed in the South Regional.

Despite this being the ninth consecutive appearance for the Huggins-coached 'Cats, and a 14-8 record in the tournament since they first became a factor -- losing to Michigan in the NCAA semifinal game in 1992 -- he is constantly under criticism for three consecutive second-round exits with a top-10 team.

He has produced eight All-Americans -- Nick Van Exel, Danny Fortson, Ruben Patterson, Melvin Levett, Dontonio Wingfield, Herb Jones and Martin -- and contrary to popular belief, his players love him.

"He's like my daddy," said Patterson, a prime candidate for NBA Most Improved Player this year as a first-year starter for the Seattle SuperSonics. "He was in my face about going to class and my practice habits and who I hung out with. If he didn't care, would he have done that? I'm sure the other guys feel that way too. He yells a lot, but once you get used to it you know it's only because he's cares so much."

Said Fortson, one of the most improved players in the NBA last season: "He makes you as good as you can be. That's what a coach does. He does that for you as a player and a person."

Kenyon Martin could only watch Cincy's loss from the bench after breaking his right leg.(AP)

He has been chided for a zero graduation rate at UC, where he has compiled a 275-85 record in 11 seasons. In fact, 14 players have graduated, but transfers into the program don't count. None have spent four years there and graduated until Martin hobbles to his diploma with a criminal justice degree in June.

"This looked like the year Coach Huggs would get his due," Patterson said. "Now, without Kenyon, it looks tough. But you know they'll still compete."

They'll be depending on their freshman backcourt of DerMarr Johnson and Kenny Satterfield, along with senior forwards Pete Mickeal, Ryan Fletcher and Jermaine Tate. Freshman center Donald Little will have to be productive blocking shots, despite his slim frame.

Nobody will be scared of the Bearcats without Martin, and none of the disappointments the program has experienced came so unexpectedly, unless you consider a two-point lead to win a third consecutive NCAA title in 1963 when a mid-court fling from Johnny Egan sent the game into overtime and set up a 60-58 Loyola-Chicago upset victory.

Maybe anything really can happen. Huggins and the Bearcats certainly hope so.

"We've gone through a lot, and it's not like we still don't have a chance," Huggins said. "We still can be a very, very good basketball team."

But good enough?