COLLEGE BASKETBALL ‘89-90 : USC PREVIEW : Raveling Believes He’s Seen Last of Last

So, George Raveling, are you worried that you’ll be fired if USC’s basketball team finishes last in the Pacific 10 for the fifth consecutive season?

“No,” the Trojan coach replied. “I’m too far along in my career to worry if I’m going to get fired. If I was a young guy just starting out, I’d probably be worried. But at this juncture in my career, experience has taught me not to panic.

“Some of you might say, ‘Damn it, you ought to be worried.’ But sometimes people succeed because they’re stubborn and foolish and they think they can make something out of nothing. I just happen to be one of those guys.

“I’m the kind of guy who wishes he didn’t have reverse in his car. I don’t ever like to go back and look back. If I could have reverse taken out of my car I’d have it taken out tomorrow.”

Raveling hopes that the Trojans will go forward this season, which opens Monday with a game against Prairie View A&M; at the Sports Arena.

Once again, Raveling has assembled a soft early nonconference schedule, including games against St. Francis (Pa.) and Central Connecticut State.

The Trojans, 10-22 overall and 2-16 in the Pac-10 last season, begin their conference schedule at Washington State on Nov. 30, then play at Washington on Dec. 2. They don’t resume conference play until Jan. 3, when they meet UCLA at Pauley Pavilion.

Raveling thinks it’s ill-advised to play conference games so early, but Pac-10 officials said they had to move up the schedule to accommodate the season-ending conference tournament.

Here’s a look at the 1989-90 Trojans:

BACKCOURT

The ranks of USC’s guards have been somewhat depleted by injuries and academic problems.

Duane Cooper, who started 19 games at point guard last season, is expected to miss most of the season because of a broken right foot. And Anthony Pendleton, who started at shooting guard, left school last summer after he was declared academically ineligible.

The Trojans, however, still have a strong group of guards, and Raveling has even considered starting three guards.

“I think the three-guard offense is the wave of the future,” he said. “I think we’re going through an evolution in college basketball. It was a game dominated by big men and now it’s a game dominated by guards.”

Harold Miner, a highly regarded 6-foot-5 freshman from Inglewood High School, is expected to start at shooting guard.

Miner averaged 29.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and four assists a game last season.

Raveling thinks Miner has extraordinary potential.

“It’s like one of those underwater explorers,” Raveling said. “They know the ship is down there with gold on it; they just have to find it and get it to shore.”

Robert Pack, a 6-2 junior college All-American at Tyler (Tex.) College, is expected to start at point guard. Pack averaged 18 points and nine assists last season.

“I think he’ll bring a dimension to the point-guard position we haven’t had since I’ve been here,” Raveling said.

Others who will play in the backcourt are Rodney Chatman, a 6-3 freshman from New Smyrna Beach, Fla.; Cordell Robinson, a 6-5 freshman from Detroit; Phil Glenn, a 6-1 freshman from Winston-Salem, N.C.; Thurman Brown, a 6-0 junior, and Tyrone Fuller, a 6-2 senior.

FRONT COURT

USC led the conference in rebounding last season, but Raveling doesn’t expect that this season because of the loss of Chris Moore, Andy Olivarez and Alan Pollard.

The Trojans have two starters back in the front court--Ronnie Coleman, a 6-6 junior power forward, and Chris Munk, a 6-9 senior center.

The Trojans’ small forwards this season include Calvin Banks, a 6-6 junior; Keith Greeley, a 6-8 freshman from Riverside, and Sean Zone, a 6-8 freshman from Houston.