Yesterday, I suggested that USC hoops fans had reason to feel optimistic about the upcoming season considering the simple fact that the release of the USA Today/ESPN coaches poll placed USC just outside their top 25 and a few spots bellow that of UCLA. But apparently Pac-10 media members do not share in that confidence:

With all of the uncertainty, recruits de-committed, and the Trojans became a young and inexperienced team. USC was picked to finish second to last in the Pac-10 preseason poll, voted on by members of the media. The Trojans had 63 points and are in ninth

Cal is the preseason favorite to win the conference.

“We lost an entire recruiting class, three players to pro basketball and there’s two that will be ineligible through the first semester,” first-year USC coach Kevin O’Neill said. “I think that’s probably the right pick, but we don’t feel we’re a ninth-place team. That’s why they play the games.”

“That’s a media thing,” senior guard Dwight Lewis said.

“Probably after today, no one cares about the rankings. Oregon State could wind up winning or Stanford.”

While I am not quite sure whether the Trojans finish as high as the coaches poll seems to indicate, I do believe a ninth place finish is out of the question for this team. The only way the Trojans would finish so low would be if Kevin O’Neill proves to be the reincarnation of Henry Bibby or the team is hammered by injuries. I don’t think scenario one is all that likely and option two is always a risk for any team. This may not be the most experienced or even talented team that USC has put out on the floor in recent years, but simply based on the overall competition in the Pac-10 this year, a ninth place seems a bit too low.

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