Titans Bracing for Tough Year : Basketball: Injuries abound, and season hasn’t even started. But team will have no trouble living up to expectations.

Cal State Fullerton basketball Coach John Sneed was expecting a rebuilding season--not a rebuilding preseason.

But with the 1990-91 opener at Lamar still a week away, the Titans have been hit by a wave of injuries and ailments that makes football Coach Gene Murphy’s tattered troops look like Team Health.

Junior point guard Wayne Williams, the team’s only returning full-time starter, missed four days of practice in October after doctors detected a heart murmur during a preseason physical. Williams was cleared to play but has been slowed by a bone chip in his ankle, which sidelined him for a few days last week.

Sophomore Bruce Bowen, who is challenging J.D. Green for the starting small forward position, missed a week of practice after undergoing surgery to have a small polyp removed from the back of his throat.

Senior Ron Caldwell and junior Agee Ward, probable starters at center and power forward, have missed some practice time because of the flu. Freshman Greg Vernon, expected to be the second guard off the bench, has been out twice because of a bad back.

Backup point guard Dareck Crane, a senior, is playing with tendinitis in his knee, and freshman guard Marcus Bell had tonsillitis last week.

Even Sneed hasn’t escaped the injury bug. The third-year coach was limping around last week when an old knee injury flared up.

“We have that training room full at 3 p.m. every day,” Sneed said. “It’s amazing that all these things are happening. I’m just thankful they’re happening now and not during the season. Maybe we’ve got it out of our system.”

Despite the problems, Sneed is pleased with his team’s progress. Things have just gone a little slower than expected.

“I’ve conditioned myself as a coach to take things a little slower this year,” Sneed said. “I have to have a fair realization of where we’re at and why. I have to be more patient.”

The Titans’ nonconference schedule could offer a reprieve. Of Fullerton’s nine nonconference opponents, six--Lamar, Butler, San Francisco, Mississippi Valley State, Portland and Division II Chapman--are coming off losing seasons.

But there will be no easy Big West Conference games for Fullerton, which picked a bad year to rebuild. Six conference teams, including 1990 NCAA champion Nevada Las Vegas and conference tournament runner-up Cal State Long Beach, return four starters, and many of the conference’s best players from last season are back.

Fullerton’s best player from last season’s 13-16 team, Cedric Ceballos, is coming off the Phoenix Suns’ bench. The Titans’ best three-point shooter and second-leading scorer, Mark Hill, is gone. The Titans have two seniors on their roster.

Not surprising, conference coaches recently picked Fullerton to finish last.

“It’s a tough year to be rebuilding when you look at all the players coming back,” Sneed said. “But if we can stay healthy and keep the right combinations on the floor, we’ll have a chance to be better than people expect.”

Here’s a closer look at the Titans:

GUARD

Sneed plans to use a three-guard rotation with Williams at the point, Joe Small at the wing and Crane backing up both.

Williams is a two-year starter who averaged 9.8 points and 7.2 assists last season. He’s not a great shooter, but his percentage from three-point range (.391) was better than his overall field-goal percentage (.344) in 1989-90.

Small, who led state community college players in scoring with a 25.3 average for College of the Sequoias, is the team’s best shooter. The former Bolsa Grande High School standout is a legitimate three-point threat who is expected to inherit much of the offensive void created by Hill’s departure.

Crane, a former Orange Coast College standout, is a decent shooter who saw minimal action last season. He’s not a natural point guard, but Sneed says he has improved his ball-handling and passing skills during the preseason.

SMALL FORWARD

J.D. Green, the 6-foot-6 junior transfer from Southern Methodist who redshirted last season, and the 6-5 Bowen will share this position.

Green, who played on an outstanding Fairfax High School team with Sean Higgins and Chris Mills, is no Ceballos, but he’s a good athlete who runs the floor well. He’s also a good defensive player and rebounder, but he might not be the offensive savior Titan fans are hoping for.

Bowen has been slowed by the surgery but looked surprisingly strong in the team’s Blue-Orange scrimmage. He’s a quick player who jumps well and will be effective on the fast break. But he might not be physical enough to provide much help inside.

POWER FORWARD

Ward, a 6-5, 225-pound junior, and Kevin Ahsmuhs, a 6-8, 215-pound community college transfer, will split time at this position.

With the exception of his bout with the flu, Ward, who was slowed by illnesses and an ankle injury last season, is in excellent shape. A 13-game starter who averaged 6.4 points and 4.8 rebounds in 1989-90, Ward will provide much-needed muscle inside. He scored 21 points in an exhibition game Saturday night.

Ahsmuhs, whose playing experience consists of one high school varsity season and one community college season, is a versatile player who will provide defensive help, and his offensive skills are improving.

CENTER

The Titans don’t have a true center, but Caldwell, a 6-8, 220-pound senior, and Aaron Wilhite, a 6-7, 225-pound sophomore, will play the No. 5 position in Fullerton’s two-wing alignment.

Caldwell, who transferred from Washington in 1988, had major knee surgery in 1987, but Sneed says he’s in tiptop shape this season. Caldwell is extremely physical under the basket and has a nice inside shooting touch.

Wilhite saw extensive action as a freshman last season, averaging 3.7 points and 3.1 rebounds. He’s another muscular inside player who is more of a rebounder than scorer.

OUTLOOK

The Titans go two-deep at the forward and center positions with little talent drop-off from starters to reserves. But the talent level isn’t as high as most Big West Conference teams.

Fullerton doesn’t have much size or a dominating inside player, and a lack of depth at point guard and shooting guard could hurt the Titans.

One factor that may work in their favor, though, is that the Titans don’t have the pressure of high preseason expectations like they’ve had in recent years. They’ll be underdogs in most conference games, and that should motivate the players and keep them loose.

Still, a middle-of-the pack finish in the Big West would be a major accomplishment.