Floyd says Trojans need to avoid complacency

One team is in the upper tier of the Pacific 10 Conference and seems bound for the NCAA tournament. The other probably needs to win the conference tournament to reach the field of 65.

Yet, Tim Floyd doesn’t see that much difference between the USC and California teams that will play each other tonight at the Galen Center.

“It could be us in their situation,” the Trojans coach said of the Golden Bears, who are in ninth place in the Pac-10.

Take away two hard-fought victories over Oregon and another over Arizona, and USC could easily share Cal’s 6-10 record in conference play instead of sitting in fourth place with a 9-7 mark.

Even though the Trojans appear to have secured an NCAA tournament invitation, Floyd said he was still using his team’s postseason aspirations as a motivator.

“There’s no givens,” he said. “Wouldn’t it be a shame for us to sit here and speculate and tell our team that we’re in the tournament at 9-9 [in Pac-10 play] when nobody has ever gotten into the tournament at 9-9? That would make us pretty arrogant, I think, at this point.

“We need to approach every game as if it’s very important until we hear otherwise from the committee, which is unfortunately a couple of weeks down the road.”

Regardless of whether he makes himself eligible for the next NBA draft, freshman O.J. Mayo said he would attend class for the rest of the second semester. “It’s the right thing to do,” said Mayo, who declined to address his basketball future.

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TONIGHT

vs. California, 7:30

Site -- Galen Center.

Radio -- 710.

Records -- USC 18-10 overall, 9-7 Pac-10; Cal 15-12, 6-10.

Update -- USC junior forward RouSean Cromwell could not practice Wednesday for a third consecutive day because of inflammation in his right knee and is not expected to play.

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ben.bolch@latimes.com