Bibby Preaches Patience

With the Trojans sliding toward the bottom of the Pacific 10 Conference standings, the time has apparently come for Coach Henry Bibby to defend his team.

“Why would we be down?” Bibby asked. “It’s not like we’re playing patsies. We’re playing some big-time programs.”

Of USC’s five conference losses, three have come to nationally-ranked Arizona, Stanford and UCLA. Instead of bemoaning those defeats, Bibby pointed out that his team led Arizona for most of the game and stayed close to Stanford with center Brian Scalabrine in early foul trouble.

“There’s a point where reality steps in and you accept what you have,” Bibby said. “We’re not Stanford. How long did it take [Cardinal Coach] Mike Montgomery to do what he’s doing? We’re not there yet.”

For the time being, the coach is preaching patience to a USC squad dominated by freshmen, sophomores and junior college transfers. He is sending a similar message to fans and the media.

“We’re growing, hopefully, to one day be a Stanford basketball team,” he said. “If everybody’s expecting that overnight, maybe I’m in the wrong job.”

Coming up: at Washington on Thursday, at Washington State on Saturday.