Before the season started, Southern Cal head coach Charlie Parker said he was changing everything associated with the Trojan men's basketball program.

New offices, locker rooms, uniforms, practice facilities, playing schemes and conditioning programs were instituted by Parker to try to erase memories of a disastrous 1994-95 campaign that saw then-head coach George Raveling almost killed in a car acciden t and the team slump to a 7-21 season, missing the postseason for the first time in four years.

Those changes gave Parker, who was elevated from assistant coach to interim coach to permanent coach after Raveling retired, one more difference - a winning team.

The Trojans (9-6 overall, 2-2 in the Pacific 10 Conference) have not seriously challenged for the Pac-10 crown since the 1991-92 season, when they finished second, but so far this season they have emerged as a possible contender. USC has already defeated favorites Stanford and Washington State, and played another contender, Cal, tough in a 63-60 loss.

The Wildcats and Trojans tip off at 6:37 p.m. at McKale Center. The game will be televised by KTTU (channel 18) and broadcasted by KNST (AM 790).

But the success of the Trojans - who returned four starters plus a fifth who started at least 16 games last season - is not a surprise to Arizona head coach Lute Olson.

"They're an experienced team, and anytime you put together an experienced team with good athletes, they're going to be successful," Olson said.

The Trojans are led by 6-foot-4, 200-pound junior Stais Boseman, who, besides leading the team with 15.5 points a game, is USC's best defender. He is joined on the wing by 6-4, 205-pound senior Brandon Martin, who averages 14.9 points. The offense revolve s around sophomore point guard Cameron Murray, who is fourth in the Pac-10 with 5.7 assists per game.

Parker has used his team's athleticism to employ an effective man-to-man defense which, in another change, replaced the match-up zone the Trojans played in the past. Olson said the USC defense is better as a result.

"I think this particular team is more efficient in their man-to-man situations," Olson said, "and when they do zone, it's a pretty standard 2-3 zone. They try to funnel everything in the middle and they do a good job of challenging shots."

While it is always a possibility that No. 18 Arizona (11-3, 1-2) will look past tonight's game because of the match-up looming against defending national champion UCLA Saturday, Olson said his team will not ignore the Trojans.

"We've got a lot of guys who have been around the horn," he said. "They don't need to be reminded this team beat Stanford and Washington State in Pullman. You have to be a good team to do what they've done."

If the Wildcats were looking past the Trojans before, they aren't anymore now that leading scorer and rebounder Joseph Blair (14.7 points and 8.9 rebounds) probably will not play because of academic problems that have sidelined him indefinitely.

Olson said senior forward Corey Williams (8.8 points and 3.9 rebounds) and freshman center A. J. Bramlett (1.9 points and 2 rebounds) would see more time in the post in Blair's absence.

Blair and frontcourt mate Ben Davis (8.4 rebounds) are 1-2 in the conference in rebounding, and Arizona leads the conference with 41.2 rebounds a game. With Blair out, Williams said he recognizes the team will have to put more emphasis on getting rebounds .

"We've got to pick up the slack rebounding with JB maybe not able to go € that's something we've got to do," Williams said. "I don't have the size JB has, but it's all about concentration, going out and playing hard. If we do that, we'll be fine."

USC has players who can take advantage of Blair's absence, starting with junior Jaha Wilson, a 6-5, 210-pound forward who is seventh in the conference with 7.5 rebounds a game. He patrols the lane with the help of 6-11 junior center Avondre Jones, who is second in the conference with 3.8 blocks a game and averages 11.2 points.

"Avondre is a legitimate 7-footer," Williams said, "but I don't know how much of a scoring threat he's going to be. Jaha is strong and a very good leaper. We've got to keep him off the glass. We've got to do our jobs."

Olson said he knows, however, that much of the load has to be picked up by Davis, who has been the most consistent performer for the Wildcats this season. He said his biggest concern was keeping the 6-8, 255-pound senior in the game.

"The biggest thing with Ben is getting himself in foul trouble," Olson said. "But he has a tremendous team attitude € the more responsibility you want to put on Ben, the happier he is."

For his part, Davis said he was ready for the challenge and looking forward to the game.

"It doesn't bother me at all," Davis said about the added responsibility. "It will be a good game. They're coming off a big win against Stanford. It's fun to play games like this."