Trojans ready to give Chase

Chase Budinger’s first name succinctly spells out the assignment of defending the Arizona sophomore forward.

Keeping up with the slithery 6-foot-7 standout involves running and fighting through screens and then running some more. The pursuit never seems to end.

When those assigned to guard Budinger have trouble staying with him, he can post the kind of numbers he did last month at the Galen Center: 29 points on 11-for-20 shooting, including four-for-seven shooting from three-point range during the Wildcats’ 80-69 victory.

“They set a lot of screens for him, but I think we’ll be better prepared this time,” Trojans sophomore guard Dwight Lewis, who repeatedly wound up on the wrong side of the screens, said earlier this week as USC prepared for tonight’s game against the Wildcats in Tucson.

Part of the Trojans’ problem in their first meeting with Arizona was the absence of sophomore guard Daniel Hackett, who bruised his right pelvis during a fall less than two minutes into the game and did not return.

Hackett is one of the Trojans’ best defenders and when he’s not in the lineup it leaves their defense more susceptible to the types of performances posted by Budinger and senior guard Jawann McClellan, who scored a career-high 23 points.

USC had centered its defensive scheme on Budinger and freshman Jerryd Bayless -- who scored only 10 points -- but was unprepared for a breakthrough effort by McClellan, who continually found himself open and capitalized by making seven of 12 shots.

“We knew he was a good player, we just didn’t close out on him a lot of times,” Lewis said. “It was mental lapses.”

USC won’t be able to afford similar mistakes tonight considering it might be without Hackett, who did not practice Wednesday after experiencing flu-like symptoms and must prove before the game that his lower back can withstand the rigors of contact if he is to play.

USC is in a rare position -- one game ahead of Arizona in the Pacific 10 Conference standings, with a chance to record consecutive victories at the McKale Center for the first time since the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons.

A victory over the Wildcats would also clinch the Trojans’ first winning road record in Pac-10 play since the 2001-02 season and further damage Arizona’s hopes of extending its run of 23 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, the longest in the nation.

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TONIGHT

at Arizona, 6 PST, ESPN

Site -- McKale Center, Tucson.

Radio -- 710.

Records -- USC 17-9 overall, 8-6 Pacific 10 Conference; Arizona 17-10, 7-7.

Update -- USC Coach Tim Floyd did not attend practice Wednesday after experiencing flu-like symptoms, a school spokesman said. Floyd later told reporters on his way into the locker room that he and his players would not be available for interviews, saying they had a bus to catch.

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ben.bolch@latimes.com