University Southern California Trojans
Game Preview
March 23, 2001 | Men's Basketball
March 23, 2001
REGIONAL: East, finals.
TIME: Saturday, 7 p.m. EST.
SITE: First Union Center, Philadelphia.
While Duke is no stranger to the Final Four, Southern California is hoping to make it there for the first time in 47 years as the two teams square off in the East region final.
The Blue Devils are in a regional final for the 10th time in the last 16 years. The Trojans, on the other hand, are in the round of eight for the first time since 1954, the year they lost to Bradley in the national semifinals.
"Duke has all the mystique, the tradition," USC coach Henry Bibby said. "They've been here numerous times. They're accustomed to being here. It's normal for them. It's not normal for us to be here every year."
Duke is 8-1 in regional final play under coach Mike Krzyzewski. Although the Blue Devils have often made it this deep in the tournament, Krzyzewski does not want his team to take the senior-laden Trojans lightly.
"They are a veteran team, a team that's played together. They're tough. They're men," Krzyzewski said of the Trojans. "They're a difficult matchup for us because their experience, not just individually but collectively, makes them very good."
Top-seeded Duke has relied heavily on the stellar play of its two All-Americans in advancing to this point. Senior forward Shane Battier and sophomore point guard Jason Williams are averaging a combined 53 points per game in the tournament.
Williams matched his career high with 34 points, including 19 straight for his team in the second half, in Duke's 76-63 victory over fourth-seeded UCLA on Thursday.
"Jason's a tremendous talent for us and it didn't surprise us that he could do that for us," said Battier, who finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds, his third straight game with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.
The key for USC on Saturday is to find a way to slow down Williams and disrupt Duke's high-scoring offense. Trojan guard Jeff Trepagnier, who is having a terrific tournament, averaging 16.3 points and a team-high 3.0 steals, will likely be assigned to shadow Williams.
USC's strength through three games has been its dominance in the paint. Sam Clancy has been a monster on the low blocks, averaging 17.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 4.0 blocks.
Led by the aforementioned inside-outside duo, USC jumped out to big leads in its wins over Oklahoma State, Boston College and Kentucky.
The sixth-seeded Trojans blew all but one point of a 21-point lead on Thursday, but still survived to defeat the second-seeded Wildcats 80-76.
Coach Henry Bibby marvels at the resolve of his team, which has knocked off two of the top three seeds in the East.
"The last three games, I've been speechless," Bibby said. "I like being speechless in these situations."
Bibby, who played on UCLA's national championship teams from 1970-72, said his team has earned the right to be excited.
"People talk about us celebrating after each win, well, this is the first time we've gotten here," Bibby said. "When you've come as many times as Duke and UCLA and Kentucky, you don't have a lot to celebrate. This is normal for them. This is not normal for USC to be here every year and we're happy about it and I think the kids have a right to show people they're excited about it."
PROBABLE STARTERS: Southern California - F Clancy (17.3 ppg, 7.4 rpg), F David Bluthenthal (13.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg), C Brian Scalabrine (14.8 ppg, 6.1 rpg), G Brandon Glanville (13.0 ppg, 6.0 apg), G Trepagnier (8.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg). Duke - F Battier (19.5 ppg, 6.9 rpg), F Nate James (13.3 ppg, 5.2 rpg), F Mike Dunleavy (12.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg), G Williams (20.9 ppg, 6.2 apg), G Chris Duhon (7.0 ppg, 4.5 apg).
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Southern California - At-large bid, Pac-10 Conference, defeated No. 11 Oklahoma State 69-54, first round, defeated No. 3 Boston College 74-71, second round, defeated No. 2 Kentucky 80-76, regional semifinal. Duke - Automatic bid, ACC tournament champion, defeated No. 16 Monmouth 95-52, first round, defeated No. 9 Missouri 94-81, second round, defeated No. 4 UCLA 76-63, regional semifinal.
ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Southern California - 9-12, 11 years. Duke - 70-22, 24 years.
