Can USC mens basketball finally live up to hype under Eric Musselman?

This should be Eric Musselman’s best team at USC.Those words were uttered a year ago, only for fate to intervene.Rodney Rice went down after only six games, Chad Baker-Mazara was dismissed on the first day of March and Alijah Arenas hobbled through the final handful of games on a badly sprained ankle.By the time they lost their opening game in the Big Ten Tournament, the Trojans were a forlorn bunch ready for the season to end.Going back to his final season at Arkansas, Musselman’s teams have not made the NCAA Tournament for three consecutive years now — an eternity for a coach who had never previously missed the tournament in back-to-back seasons.But here comes that dangerous refrain again: This should be Musselman’s best team at USC.The optimism centers on a roster that features tremendous length and height — even with 7-foot-1 center Eric Reibe, a transfer from UConn, sidelined by a foot injury until around the start of Big Ten play.What other college team will count on a 7-1 small forward like the Trojans have in Adonis Ratliff, the sharpshooting freshman and son of former NBA All-Star Theo Ratliff?“Adonis,” Arenas said with palpable awe, “his shooting, that’s something else.”Identical twin Darius Ratliff is among the options to hold down the 5 spot until Reibe returns, along with the 6-10 Jacob Cofie as part of a small-ball lineup and perhaps some spot minutes from 6-10 Aussie Joshua Hughes and 6-10 freshman Onyeka Joe Agu.Cofie will mostly play power forward, with Hughes getting some time there as well as 6-9 freshman Christian Collins, one of five former McDonald’s All-Americans on the roster.The length carries into the backcourt with the 6-7 Arenas returning for a second college season after being limited to 14 games last season because of a knee injury.After returning from the sore ankle that required a six-week recovery after the season, Arenas is expected to fully unleash the talent that could make him an NBA lottery pick.“Complet...