It could be start of sweet roll for USC

The culture of USC basketball has changed so radically that if the Trojans aren’t playing for a spot in the Final Four a year from today, it might be considered a disappointment.

That’s what happens when you combine a group of overachievers who reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament with an incoming recruiting class ranked as high as No. 2 in the country.

The Trojans hope that juniors Nick Young and Gabe Pruitt will stick around to join perhaps the nation’s most heralded recruit, guard O.J. Mayo, to form perhaps the best backcourt in team history.

Young and Pruitt have said they plan to attend the NBA’s pre-draft camp May 28-June 5 in Orlando, Fla., before deciding whether to declare for the draft. Pruitt appears to be leaning toward staying at USC and Young seems to be leaning toward leaving, though Young said Friday night after the Trojans’ 74-64 loss to North Carolina in an East Regional semifinal that there was “a big chance” he could return.

The loss of two 1,000-point career scorers would significantly lessen the expectations for a team already losing the school’s ninth all-time leading scorer, senior Lodrick Stewart, who finished his career with 1,466 points. Young ranks sixth with 1,486 points and Pruitt 27th with 1,102.

Nevertheless, Stewart said he envisioned a promising future for a program that returned to the NCAA tournament this season for the first time in five years.

“I think as long as Tim Floyd is the coach, it’s going to be a national powerhouse, one of the elite programs in the country,” Stewart said. “It’s going to keep getting better. Gonna be great talent coming in next year and the years to come.”

The Trojans expect to add explosive talent next season in Mayo, former Lynwood High forward Davon Jefferson and Louisiana natives Leonard Washington and Marcus Simmons.

Floyd’s biggest challenge with the newcomers might not be managing their skills so much as their personalities.

Mayo has drawn criticism this season for a three-game suspension after his ejection from a game and another incident in which he hurled a basketball into the stands after a dunk. The McDonald’s All-American from Huntington (W.Va.) High also was suspended three times at a previous high school, twice for fighting and once for academic issues.

Washington made news last week for refusing to reenter a high school state championship game in which his team trailed.

And the well-traveled Jefferson, who once signed with Nevada Las Vegas but failing to qualify academically, has gained a reputation as a malcontent.

Floyd has defended his recruits, especially the much-maligned Mayo, whom he called a “humble kid” who had made a few youthful mistakes.

“He has been under the public eye for five years,” Floyd said. “He gets fouled and hacked and beat up in these AAU games and never says a word to the officials. He gets knocked to the floor, gets up, has the same demeanor, the same face, walks to the foul line and shoots his free throws. I think he’s a humble kid.”

Attitude was a strength for the 2006-07 Trojans, a resolute and hardworking group whose refuse-to-lose approach allowed them to exceed expectations.

“We have been a team that has been free of distractions,” Floyd said of his current players. “They love each other and have played extremely hard. Real proud of where they’ve come.”

The coach might be even prouder of where they’re going if the Trojans can make the expected improvements in a frontcourt that was all too reliant this season on freshman forward Taj Gibson. The return of redshirt freshman Kasey Cunningham from a torn knee ligament and a return to form by sophomore forward RouSean Cromwell, whose development was stalled by off-season knee surgery, could help transform USC’s interior presence from a weakness to a strength.

The Trojans might still be playing today if North Carolina hadn’t out-rebounded them, 25-15, during a second half in which the Tar Heels overcame a 16-point deficit.

But Floyd wasn’t about to lambaste his players for their shortcomings at the conclusion of a season in which they set a team record with 25 victories and set the stage for even greater expectations.

“I told them that they created an identity for themselves that they enjoyed as a result of playing with each other, and that there was a true love for each other,” Floyd said. “We have the majority of these kids back next year, and we told them we want them to come back and be eager to train and improve and try to go beyond this game a year from now.”

ben.bolch@latimes.com

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EXPECT THEM BACK

Trojans’ prospects

A look at USC for the 2007-08 season:

Expect them back -- Taj Gibson, F, 8.7 rpg; Dwight Lewis, G, 5.8 ppg; Daniel Hackett, G, 5.3 ppg; RouSean Cromwell, F, 2.3 ppg; Keith Wilkinson, F, 2.2 rpg; Kyle Austin, F, 1.6 rpg. Kasey Cunningham, F, redshirt; Ryan Wetherell, G, 0.8 ppg; Terence Green, G, 0.5 rpg; Reed Doucette, F, 0.0 ppg.

* Incoming -- O.J. Mayo, G, top backcourt prospect; Davon Jefferson, F, and Leonard Washington, F, should help bolster the post positions; Marcus Simmons, G/F, a fierce defender.

* Outgoing -- Lodrick Stewart, G, 13.8 ppg; Abdoulaye N’diaye, C, 3.1 ppg; Chris Penrose, G, 0.5 ppg.

* Decision to make -- Nick Young, G/F, 17.5 ppg; Gabe Pruitt G, 12.5 ppg.

* Frontcourt -- Gibson will no longer have to go it alone with the anticipated arrival of Jefferson and Washington and the return of Cunningham from a torn knee ligament. The injury-plagued Cromwell is hoping to recapture the promise he showed as a freshman. Floyd could have a scholarship available to target another big man if Young or Pruitt declares for the NBA draft. Rating (1-10): 7.

* Backcourt -- Even if Young and Pruitt declare for the draft, the Trojans will have capable ballhandlers in Mayo and Hackett, who distinguished himself over the season’s final weeks. The big void could come at shooting guard, where USC will have to replace Stewart, who shot 44% from three-point range.

Rating (1-10): 8.

* Forecast -- USC is expected to battle Oregon and Washington State for second in the Pacific 10 Conference behind UCLA, and a reasonable postseason expectation would be a second consecutive trip to the Sweet 16. If Young and Pruitt return, the Trojans become Final Four contenders.

BEN BOLCH