Inside Look Isn’t the Best for Trojans

These will be Tim Floyd’s options tonight at Staples Center if USC big men Abdoulaye N’diaye and Jeremy Barr falter or get into foul trouble:

Keith Wilkinson, a 6-foot-9 freshman who has averaged one point and 0.8 of a rebound in 28 minutes.

Greg Gaudino, a 6-6 former walk-on who has averaged 0.3 of a point and 0.8 of a rebound in 13 minutes.

Neither is the kind of skilled playmaker Floyd would like to insert into his lineup against a California team that features one of the best frontcourts in the country.

But the Trojan coach finds himself with no alternatives after an injury to forward RouSean Cromwell, who broke his right foot in pregame warmups Friday and will be out at least another month.

“We were the thinnest team in the country inside with three guys, and now we’re down to two,” Floyd said. “So it’s going to mean that these other guys are going to have to play some minutes.”

USC (9-2) probably will need one of its seldom-used post players to at least hold his own in the Trojans’ Pacific 10 Conference opener if they are to extend their nine-game winning streak and defeat the Golden Bears (6-3) for a fourth consecutive time.

“I have to be ready to step up and fill the void,” said Wilkinson, who scored four points in 10 minutes Friday during the Trojans’ 68-38 victory over North Carolina A&T.; “We’re already lacking a little bit on the boards, so hopefully I can get in there and get some boards and help the team.”

Floyd said he isn’t as concerned about replacing Cromwell’s modest production -- 4.7 points and 5.3 rebounds -- as he is the 6-10, 215-pound freshman’s interior presence.

“You can lose points,” Floyd said, “but you can’t lose heart and toughness, and that’s what we’ve lost.”

Cromwell was fourth in the Pac-10 with 17 blocked shots and was a key cog in a Trojan defense that has held opponents to 37.5% shooting and 59.4 points per game, both second in the conference.

Even with its full complement of big men, none of whom had any Division I experience before this season, USC would figure to be at a disadvantage against California’s front line of sophomores Leon Powe and DeVon Hardin.

The 6-8 Powe, who has three double-doubles in the five games he has played, is leading the conference in scoring average (20.8) and is second in rebound average (9.4).

The 6-11 Hardin showed his potential with 23 points and 14 rebounds in the Golden Bears’ 83-76 victory over Northeastern.

“The key thing is keeping it out of their hands, giving them as few touches as possible,” Wilkinson said.

The Trojans have beaten a couple of teams with solid big men, including North Carolina’s Tyler Hansbrough and Brigham Young’s Trent Plaisted but will be facing a player the caliber of Powe for the first time.

“We all know he’s a good player and a good shooter,” N’diaye said.

“The coaches have been teaching us the right way to guard him to try to take away his game, just like we did against the big guy from North Carolina. I think we’re going to be all right.”

N’diaye, whose 20 blocks are second in the Pac-10, has become a fixture in the Trojans’ starting lineup the last four games by avoiding the foul trouble that plagued him earlier this season. The 6-11, 230-pound junior is averaging 4.5 points and 4.3 rebounds while making his biggest impact on defense.

By contrast, Barr has been so inconsistent that Floyd did not play him against North Carolina. The 6-8, 265-pound freshman, whose wide body seems ideally suited for rebounding, is averaging 4.0 points and only 1.9 rebounds in 14.8 minutes.

“Guys coming off the bench who haven’t rebounded well have got to rebound and they’ve got to defend, because Cromwell really progressed in both of those areas,” Floyd said.

Said Wilkinson: “We just have to pick up with where we left off with our nine-game winning streak and continue to play well and play hard.

“The injury to RouSean definitely hurts, but we’re not going to let anything like that affect us moving forward as a team.”

TONIGHT

vs. California, 7:30 p.m., FSN West 2

Site -- Staples Center.

Radio -- 1540.

Records -- USC 9-2, California 6-3.

Update -- All of California’s starters average double figures in scoring, led by forward Leon Powe (20.8 points a game) and guard Ayinde Ubaka (14.0). The Golden Bears failed to hold halftime leads in their last two games, which were losses to DePaul and Kansas. USC is allowing 17.4 points fewer per game than last season, the largest decrease in the country.

Tickets -- (213) 740-4672.