Trepagnier Gets Tough Assignment

In several games last season, Jeff Trepagnier was called upon to try to shut down the opponent’s top scorer.

Trepagnier will get a familiar assignment tonight.

His mission: Keep Stanford’s Casey Jacobsen from running wild against USC.

Jacobsen isn’t the only weapon the top-ranked Cardinal has, but he’s where you start when figuring out how to beat Stanford.

The 6-foot-6 sophomore is a candidate for Pacific 10 and national player-of-the-year honors. In averaging 17.4 points, Jacobsen is shooting 49.8% overall, 45.8% from three-point range and 78.2% from the free throw line.

“He can shoot from outside, but he can also drive to the basket,” Trepagnier said. “But Coach [Henry Bibby] is looking for a defensive stopper again, and I don’t want to let him down.

“It’s a tough challenge, taking on the other team’s best scorer. If you do good, you get all the praise. But if you do bad, there will be a lot of people talking about you. But I think I can handle it.”

Trepagnier guarded Jacobsen at times in the two games USC and Stanford played last season. Jacobsen didn’t have a great game at the Sports Arena, scoring 13 points in Stanford’s 67-57 victory. He was a bigger factor in the second game, scoring 23 points in the Cardinal’s 111-68 romp.

Trepagnier said he expects the Cardinal to try to free Jacobsen with lots of screens.

“I’ve got to try to limit his touches and stay with him at all times,” he added. “Because once he gets the ball, you don’t know if he’s going to shoot or drive to the basket.”

Trepagnier--averaging 7.2 points and 4.3 rebounds since rejoining USC six games ago--also knows that even with the energy he must expend to keep up with Jacobsen, USC will need some offense from him as well.

But even if Trepagnier went scoreless, it would be OK if he could harass Jacobsen into a bad game.

And if the 21st-ranked Trojans can knock off the last unbeaten Division I team in the country?

“It would mean a lot,” Trepagnier said. “This is a crucial part of the season, and to go into Stanford and win would help our confidence a lot.

“We’ll have to have three, four guys playing great. You can’t go into Stanford with just one guy playing good. You’ll need at least four of your starters playing good just to be in the game.”

This will be the second consecutive time USC has faced Stanford at Maples Pavilion when the Cardinal was No. 1.

Before Stanford, the last top-ranked team USC faced was Massachusetts in the Rainbow Classic on Dec. 29, 1995. The Trojans lost that one, 78-63.

The last time USC beat a No. 1 team, the victim was UCLA, 87-86, at Pauley Pavilion on March 6, 1970.

TONIGHT

at No. 1 Stanford, 7:30

* Site--Maples Pavilion, Palo Alto.

* Radio--XTRA (690).

* Records--No. 21 USC 15-4, 5-2; No. 1 Stanford 19-0, 7-0.

* Update--So far Stanford has taken everyone’s best shot with aplomb, outscoring opponents by an average of 23 points a game. “The kids have enjoyed the challenge [of being undefeated],” Coach Mike Montgomery said. “But there are still three to four teams that can finish on top in the conference, and things can change quickly with a loss or two.” If the Trojans want to end their eight-game losing streak at Maples, they will need to keep Stanford from getting off a quick start, force Jarron and Jason Collins to defend Sam Clancy (18.4) and Brian Scalabrine (14.9) from the perimeter, and keep Jacobsen (17.4) and Ryan Mendez (11.3) from raining three-point shots.