USC Has a Chance to Gain Stature in the Wooden Classic

USC Coach Henry Bibby looked around the table where he was sitting with Auburn Coach Cliff Ellis, Stanford Coach Mike Montgomery and Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski, then tried to put the lineup of the sixth John Wooden Classic in perspective.

“I’m glad I have to play only one team instead of all three,” Bibby said.

The one game against the 16th-ranked Blue Devils (2-2), scheduled for 2:30 p.m. today at the Anaheim Pond, will be a formidable one for the unranked Trojans (2-2).

No. 2 Auburn (2-0) and No. 9 Stanford (4-0) will play the one-day event’s first game at noon.

Never mind that the Blue Devils lost three players early (Elton Brand, Corey Maggette and William Avery) and senior Trajan Langdon to the NBA. Or that their two wins are against Army and Columbia after losses to Stanford and Connecticut. Or that Krzyzewski has seven freshmen on his roster. “It’s the youngest team I’ve ever coached at Duke,” Krzyzewski said.

Bibby sees only a collection of athletes he expects to blossom by the NCAA tournament in March.

“Duke is very, very good, the best 2-2 team in the country,” Bibby said. “They gave Stanford everything it could handle. I get concerned when I see a game like that. Duke probably should have won that game.

“Within two years they’ll win the [national] championship.”

Krzyzewski agrees the Blue Devils have talent. But that doesn’t mean they will breeze past the Trojans.

“I have respect for what Henry is doing at USC,” Krzyzewski said. “His team is very athletic. We’ll have a difficult time against them, but playing games like this is how your team gets better.”

The Blue Devils are paced by junior forwards Chris Carrawell (18.5 points, 6.8 rebounds) and Shane Battier (15.5 points, 5.5 rebounds). But starting freshman guard Jason Williams (13.8 points, 5.5 rebounds) is having an impact.

USC, which won its opener against Cal State Northridge, is coming back from a 1-2 showing in the Maui Invitational. The win was a blowout of Memphis. The losses were to North Carolina and Utah State.

The defeat by the Aggies, on a three-point bank shot by Utah State guard Bernard Rock with nine seconds to play, stung because it was a game Bibby and the Trojans thought they should have won, even though Bibby pretty much played only his starting five all three games.

“You use those games as a measuring stick,” Bibby said. “I hope they learned they have to be physically and mentally ready every night to play. Any team can beat any team this season.”

Bibby is getting solid efforts from sophomore forward Sam Clancy (17.2 points, 7.5 rebounds), junior guard Jeff Trepagnier (15 points, 7.5 rebounds) junior center Brian Scalabrine (14.5 points, seven rebounds) and sophomore forward David Bluthenthal (10.5 points, 7.2 rebounds).

But, Bibby said, sophomore point guard Brandon Granville (9.5 points, 10.5 assists) is the key to the Trojans’ engine running smoothly.

“Like every young kid, Brandon is guy who loses focus at times,” said Bibby, referring to the 0-for-10 shooting performance Granville endured against Utah State.

“That Utah game let him know he has to come focused every night. He has to be the head of the team to make us go. If Brandon doesn’t go, the rest of the team doesn’t go, either.”

Bibby said his starters will again get most of the playing time. USC was hoping sixth man Jarvis Turner, who injured his left foot three weeks ago, might be able to play, but Bibby said Friday he will hold him out.

The Cardinal is the only one of the four teams that has played in the Wooden Classic before, defeating Georgia, 76-74, in 1997. That team went on to a 30-5 record and went to the Final Four before losing to Kentucky by a point in overtime.

After seeing how Stanford mowed down Duke and Iowa to win the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament in New York, Ellis suggested this Cardinal edition could evolve into a similar squad.

“It’s a beautiful team,” Ellis said of Stanford. “They’ve lost a key player in Mark Madsen [out with a pulled hamstring], but the Collins twins make them strong up front. Their backcourt is experienced and I love their freshman. We will have our hands full.”

The Collins twins Jarron (a junior) and Jason (a freshman who missed two seasons because of injuries) are averaging 13 and nine points while taking down 7.8 and 8.5 rebounds, respectively. The freshman touted by Ellis is swingman Casey Jacobsen, who averages 11.8 points.

Auburn has four returning starters from last season’s Southeastern Conference champion. Two of them are off to monster starts: Senior forward Chris Porter is averaging 15.5 points and 9.5 rebounds, and senior center Mamadou N’diaye is averaging 16 points and 16 rebounds.

“Auburn is extremely talented and extremely physical,” Montgomery said. “It’s not about what they do, it’s how they do it. It’s an extreme challenge for us.”