Bibby Throws Curve in Annual Rant

In what has become an annual rite of passage for USC as it begins Pacific 10 Conference play, Coach Henry Bibby has again ripped the effort of his upperclassmen.

He did it to his seniors -- David Bluthenthal, Sam Clancy and Brandon Granville -- a season removed from an Elite Eight run in 2001 and he did it again this week to senior Desmon Farmer and juniors Derrick and Errick Craven, Nick Curtis and Rory O’Neil.

But in a twist, Bibby has also taken to praising his newcomers -- Jeff McMillan and Lodrick and Rodrick Stewart.

“I’ve had ... the new guys do exactly what I thought they’d do,” Bibby said. “I question the older guys and their commitment, their dedication and their love for playing basketball right now.”

When asked if any of his upperclassmen were coming along, Bibby paused before softly answering, “No.”

But when asked why he experiences the same seeming drudgery from his players every season, Bibby was quick to respond.

“I expect a lot. We give a lot, we expect a lot in return,” he said. “We give an education that’s worth $40,000 a year. We give knowledge. I have knowledge; I’ve been coaching since 1981. I give all that knowledge.

“I and the university and the coaches have a love for [basketball] and we just want people to love ... it. That’s all I want. We’re not asking anyone to jump off a building. We’re not asking you to run through a building. We’re asking you to come and do what you were brought here to do. That’s all I ask.”

Errick Craven acknowledged before the first game that he was “bored” with the grind of preseason workouts, a startling admission that incensed Bibby.

But not all is negative with a 5-4 team that could, and should, be 7-2 before tonight’s league opener against Oregon.

“It’s a matter of the kids wanting to pick it up and do it,” Bibby said. “Do they have it in them to do it?

“If we do that, then I think we’re as good as any team in the country. But that’s the big [question] -- if we can.”

Calling USC’s 5-4 record an extreme disappointment may be a bit misleading, especially when you consider that the Trojans’ nonconference opponents have a combined winning percentage of .648 (57-31).

Among other Pac-10 teams: California’s nonconference opponents are .679, No. 4 Arizona’s are .609, UCLA’s are .600 and No. 5 Stanford’s are .532.

The two losses USC would love to have back -- the 92-83 overtime defeat by Nevada Las Vegas, which is 8-3, after blowing a seven-point lead in the final minute, and the lead-squandering 93-78 loss to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

*

TONIGHT

vs. Oregon, 6, Fox Sports Net 2

Site -- Sports Arena.

Radio -- KMPC (1540), KSPA (1510), XEMM (800).

Records -- USC 5-4, Oregon 5-2.

Update -- Oregon senior small forward Luke Jackson, who can no longer hide behind Freddie Jones or Luke Ridnour, both of whom are in the NBA, has begun to make a name for himself. Jackson, averaging 21 points and 7.1 rebounds, and shooting 47.4% (18 of 38) from three-point territory, is second among Pac-10 scorers. USC’s Farmer is third with an 18.4 scoring average. McMillan is third in rebounding (9.3) and is leading in shooting percentage (.645). Oregon has lost to Kansas, 77-67, at Kansas City, and Alabama, 87-86, at Las Vegas.