Wade, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard, averaged 21.5 points per game last season for the Golden Eagles. So far this year the high score for both Bradley and Chapman has been 12 points.

"With Wade gone, we lose a lot of his scoring and a lot of his passing, but I think the team as a whole can come together to cover that," Bradley said. "I don't think the two-guard position necessarily needs to score 20-some points every game."

Last year's recipient of the team's "Hit the Deck" award for his ability to take charges, 6-foot-4 Chapman said one of his greatest strengths is the ability to take the charge.

He drew a charge against Jose Winston in the last few minutes of play against the Wisconsin All-Stars Nov. 9 at the Bradley Center. The two free throws from that foul, plus two more in the last 46.4 seconds of the game, insured Marquette's 79-72 victory.

"I think it just comes naturally," he said of taking charges. "I led my team in charges in high school. I took 44 charges my senior year. So it's something that just comes naturally. You just step in front of the guy and take the charge."

According to Bradley, his greatest contributions this year will come from his defensive ability. Both guards said they need to improve on their rebounding this year.

Chapman, who came off the bench in all 33 of the Golden Eagles' games last year, has been the starting guard all but once this season, including the team's exhibition tour to Costa Rica in mid-October.

He said the amount of playing time he saw last year has given him more confidence on the court this season.

"I played in all 33 games (last year), so I don't have to be nervous," Chapman said. "I don't have to be scared, so I can just go out there and play without worrying about what other people think."

Chapman said the thing he is looking forward to most about being on the team this year is being able to bond with his teammates and "go through the trials and tribulations of the year."

"We're close, but we're not as close as we need to be," he said of the team dynamic. "Time will tell how close we get as the season progresses."

After playing in the Final Four as a freshman, Bradley said the most important lesson he took away from last year was to take every game one at a time.

"You can't look ahead, and you can't look behind," he said. "You have to worry about that game and don't look at any other games."

Last season, 5-foot-11 Bradley averaged 8.6 minutes per game in 22 games. He has seen increased playing time off the bench in each of the team's three games this year, including 33 minutes Nov. 7 against Team Nike at the Bradley Center, playing both guard positions after junior guard Travis Diener injured his left knee.

During those 33 minutes, Bradley scored 7 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and had 2 assists.

Bradley's high score of the season came when he started at guard against the Nicaraguan national team in Costa Rica Oct. 18, scoring 12 points and grabbing three steals.

Both players said they did a lot of off-the-court preparation during the offseason, including weightlifting and watching film.

"Basically, we have a young team trying to get to the national championship," Bradley said. "It's exciting to see how good we're going to be."