Turner Says Sprained Ankle Won’t Stop Him From Playing

USC’s leading reserve big man, Jarvis Turner, will be hobbled tonight by a sprained right ankle he first injured Monday.

But although he participated lightly in the team’s Wednesday practice, Turner--a fifth-year senior whose Trojan career has been marred by injuries--said he planned to play if called on.

“The swelling hasn’t gone down,” Turner said. “But I’ve been doing a lot of treatment to get the strength back. Hopefully, tomorrow I’ll be ready to go. I feel the adrenaline will take some of the pain away.

“Besides, I’ve never been [to the Sweet 16], so there isn’t too much that will keep me from playing this game.”

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When Kentucky was lurching through the early part of its schedule with a 3-5 record, Coach Tubby Smith got a pep talk from an unexpected source.

“I remember talking with [former Dodger manager] Tommy Lasorda,” Smith said. “I had a chance to meet him in Sydney, Australia [during the Olympics]. You talk about a guy who is dynamic. He is Mr. Enthusiasm. And one of the things he said was, ‘Every time you go to that locker room or that practice, Tubby, you’ve got to tell them how much you love them, how great they are.’

“I remembered that at a point where [the team] was really trying my patience and it was tough to do that. But it paid off.”

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Of all the questions USC Coach Henry Bibby heard Wednesday, the one that seemed to amuse him was whether his team was tough.

“We don’t have a tough team, that’s not our personality,” Bibby said. “We’re not getting tougher, we’re getting more focused. Maybe that’s why I take on that toughness role myself.”