COLLEGE BASKETBALL ‘89-90 : USC WOMEN’S PREVIEW : Trojans Rebuild With New Coach, New Style

Cherie Nelson is off the USC basketball court and yet the Trojans’ most notable acquisition is not another high-scoring player to succeed her, but rather a fiery and successful coach, Marianne Stanley.

Lost to graduation is Nelson, the Trojans’ No. 2 all-time scorer behind Cheryl Miller. Gone, too, is former coach Linda Sharp, who left after 12 years at USC to become coach and athletic director at Southwest Texas.

Stanley, who once guided Old Dominion to three national titles, is considered a disciplinarian.

“For the players, it’s a big change anytime you have a new coach,” Stanley said.

But they may adjust easier to Stanley than to the absence of Nelson, who led the Trojans to a 12-16 overall record and a three-way tie for fourth place in the Pacific 10 Conference at 8-10.

“We don’t have a player who’s going to go out there and score 30 points a night,” Stanley said.

She figures it may take a few months before the Trojans start raising any eyebrows.

“I don’t think we’re at the same pace as the top two teams in the conference just yet, but we’re going to be closing the gap pretty quickly,” she said. “We’ve got to go from a one-dimensional team to a multidimensional team. We may not be the kind of team we want to be until mid-season.”

The Trojans have three returning starters, the best scorer among them 6-3 senior forward Rosalind Hodge, who averaged 9.9 points and eight rebounds a game last season.

The only returning center is Bolivia Gaytan, who averaged 4.1 points. Gaytan, who backed up to Nelson last season, started 10 games last season and shot a team-high 52.1%.

Starting forward Tammy Hammond, a 6-3 senior forward, scored in double figures in her last six games of last season. Hammond averaged 8.8 points and 4.9 rebounds last year.

The other returning starter is 5-8 guard Tammy Story, who made the Pac-10 all-freshman team last sesaon. Story, who dealt 88 assists and had 57 steals, averaged 3.6 points a game.

The leading candidates at point guard--replacing departed Karen Howell--include juniors Jennifer Dunbar and 5-6 Michelle Santino. Other guards include 5-7 junior Teresa Strickland and 5-8 sophomore Julie Garcia. Dunbar will probably get the nod because she has more experience.

Molly Wampler, 6-1, from Gahr High and a recent transfer from Colorado, is considered a possible starter at forward.

Four California high school players will join the USC freshman ranks: 5-11 guard Joni Easterly from Anaheim Katella; 6-3 forward Kim Gessig from Upland High; 5-4 guard Tamessha Hayes, a star at St. Anthony High in Long Beach, and 6-2 forward Laura Hittle from Morro Bay High.