Bibby Receives a Three-Year Extension

When USC officials announced plans to build a new campus arena last October, men’s basketball Coach Henry Bibby said he wanted to be around to open the doors.

On Friday Bibby took a step toward ensuring he would, signing a three-year contract extension. Added to the two years he had remaining on his current contract, the new deal carries him through the 2004-05 season.

“Mike Garrett and Daryl Gross have made a commitment to me and the program,” Bibby said of USC’s athletic director and associate athletic director. “It says to me we’re going in the right direction.”

“It was a mutual thing,” said Gross, who negotiated the contract. “Henry made it very clear to us that he wanted to be here. And in looking at how he is building the program . . . people saw how good we could be before we had injuries.

“He is recruiting well and we also like how his student-athletes are doing academically.”

Gross would not reveal terms of the contract, saying that “salary-wise it puts Henry among the upper echelon of Pac-10 coaches.” Bibby could not comment on the salary as part of the terms of the contract.

Bibby--who was appointed interim coach on Feb. 7, 1996, when Charlie Parker was fired, and was given the job permanently five weeks later--has a 57-57 record in four years at USC.

Last season the Trojans were 16-14. They got off to a 6-1 start in conference play, including home victories over Arizona and UCLA. But injuries to Sam Clancy and Jarvis Turner robbed the Trojans of a starting forward and top reserve. They went 3-8 the rest of the schedule, finished fifth in the Pacific 10 Conference and did not receive a postseason bid.

Along with Clancy, Bibby’s other starters--Brian Scalabrine, Jeff Trepagnier, Brandon Granville and David Bluthenthal--return.

Bibby is down two assistant coaches, as Stan Williams took a job with Arizona State and Paul Mokeski went to the minor league Kansas City Knights. Mokeski was fired by the Knights after he was charged with misdemeanor possession of cocaine. Sources at USC said Bibby is considering Damion Archibald, who was an assistant at Pepperdine, but Bibby would not confirm it.