Philip Ricci's on-court motto could be seen spreading last Saturday night when

the Beavs virtually told Doug Wrenn and his Dawgs to Bring It! UW brought as much

as they could and were not able to take down OSU (9-7, 2-5). This weekend presents

a greater challenge as they head to SoCal and take on USC (7-8, 3-4). Ricci's

motto should become infectious as soon as they hit the court at the L.A Sports

Arena.

With the loss of three top Pac-10 players to the NBA last year (Sam Clancy,

Brandon Granville and David Bluthenthal) and two straight losses to Cal and

Stanford last weekend, it might appear the Trojans are hurting. But Desmon Farmer

and the Craven twins beg to differ. They have a mostly healthy bench with only

one serious injury suffered by Brandon Brooks who has a dislocated ankle. The

Trojans have, however, shown their ability in close victories over UCLA and

Arizona State.

Derrick Craven (6-2, So)

Averaging 4 points and 3 rebounds a game, Derrick is not a definite threat from

the outside. His ball handling skills keep him from weaving to the bucket against

many in the Pac. However, his defense is aggressive and will test the Oregon

State offense. He is a scrapper who will chase down every ball, gaining any

steal and loose ball he can.

Desmon Farmer (6-4, Jr)

Coach Bibby calls him "Instant Offense." Farmer is a definite threat

from the outside, averaging 21 points in conference play and shooting 42 percent

from behind the arc. Keeping this Trojan down will be difficult. Haywood must

play active "D" and not let Farmer shoot without a hand in his face.

Errick Craven (6-2, So)

A threat on both ends of the court, Craven averages 17 points and 6 rebounds.

His quickness and ability to penetrate to the bucket challenges many opponents

in the Pac-10. The Beaver defense will need to be solid on the inside to keep

him out.

Nick Curtis (6-8, So)

An agile performer on the inside with many moves in his Nikes (7.6ppg), Curtis

plays strong defense averaging 8 rebounds a game. Beaver insiders will need

to post up and block out hard against this inside force who can steal it just

as fast as he can score.

Rory O'Neil (6-11, So)

O'Neil is a young talent who still needs quality time playing in the Pac to

sharpen his skills. Though not a skilled defensive player, he does have a large

repertoire of post moves to display to the Beavers Thursday night. Ricci and

Jackson must use their quickness and play some great defense to keep this man

down.

Though they have a 17 man bench, just five other players can be seen in quality

time on the floor, including, Roydell Smiley, Robert Hutchinson, Kostas Chrissis,

Jerry Dupree, and Greg Guenther. Together they average 14.3 points a game. They

come off the bench as serious defensive threats. However, when called upon,

two of these men can produce serious offensive numbers, as Hutchinson is a 38

percent 3-point shooter and Dupree is 46 percent from the field.

The Coach:

Henry Bibby (7th Season at USC)

Career Record as Head Coach: 120-72 at USC

Postseason Record as Head Coach: Four Postseasons (3 NCAA, 1 NIT)

The Beavers need to bring their "A" game to SoCal Thursday night.

The Trojans have a perimeter that can throw down with the best of the Pac. Haywood

needs to bring their accuracy percentages up, and Hurd should tell Farmer how

and when he will take him to the bucket, and follow through. Stellar games need

to come from inside, where Ricci shines and Jackson has the ability and every

opportunity to defy the USC defense.

While the Beavers have stepped up their defense lately, they have still been

soft on the boards, and nothing keeps those opponents away like blocking out.

OSU will need to stay close to their opponents all night and not allow offensive

rebounds, put-backs and easy shots. The Kick Butt, Take Names attitude should

envelop the Beavs this weekend, bringing a new level of toughness to the court.