Bibby Likes Mood Despite Inconsistency

There have been plenty of opportunities for the Trojans to become frustrated over losing six of their last seven games, especially since four of the defeats were by five points or fewer.

But Coach Henry Bibby said the players aren’t punching walls or sharing primal screams.

“In the game against Arizona State they got frustrated by what was happening,” said Bibby, referring to the physical play. “Other than that, they’ve hung in there and played together.

“We haven’t had all four guys who play the majority of the minutes play well every night. You see what happens when the four guys play well; we’re pretty good. We’re not a bad team when two of four, or three of four play well. But when all four are playing, I’d put us against a lot of people. But that’s part of having sophomores. You still get inconsistency at times.”

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USC has received an oral commitment from Travis Hanour, a 6-foot-6 guard-forward from Laguna Beach High. His coach, Bret Fleming, said Hanour made his decision Sunday night and canceled recruiting trips to Arizona and Utah. Hanour averaged 25.7 points and 9.7 rebounds this season.

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Much has been made about top-ranked Stanford’s defensive prowess, and rightfully so. So far this season the Cardinal is holding teams to a 33.9% average from the floor. The school record is 36.6%, set in the 1962-63 season. The NCAA record is 35.8%, set by Marquette in 1993-94.

In the rebounding department, Stanford has averaged 42.3 a game, opponents only 32.2.