BIBBY BAND IS HOT : USC 93, CAL 85.

Byline: Scott Wolf Daily News Staff Writer

The facts are exceeding expectations so fast now, the USC players are among those forced to admit their surprise.

Even Rodrick Rhodes, who routinely experienced first place in his college career while playing at Kentucky, marveled at how far the Trojans have come this season.

``I didn't come here to just lose, but I can sit here and tell you, if I said I thought we'd be in first place right now, I'd be lying,'' Rhodes said.

But that is exactly where the Trojans are located, tied with UCLA atop the Pacific-10 Conference standings, after defeating California 93-85 before 5,294 Saturday afternoon at the Sports Arena.

By defeating Cal, which had won six straight conference games, the Trojans have made a case for being the hottest team in the conference.

USC (13-7, 8-3) has won four straight games, the Pac-10's longest winning streak, after dispatching the Bears with a tight man-to-man defense that was rarely used in the teams' first meeting.

Trojans coach Henry Bibby, who has typically been stingy with compliments regarding his team, was pleased enough to make his boldest statement of the season.

Asked if USC was the best team in Los Angeles, Bibby said, ``I think we're one of the best teams in the country.''

It's doubtful the pollsters will agree. USC did not receive any votes in last week's Associated Press poll.

But a sweep over the Bay Area schools has unquestionably lifted morale among the Trojans.

They are in first place at a later stage in the season than any of the teams from the successful Harold Miner era of the early '90s.

And the Trojans are beginning to feel as if they've finally earned some respect.

``The big thing is when teams were going to L.A. before, the big game was UCLA, and the other game was USC or whatever,'' center David Crouse said. ``It's not like that anymore. They've got to play both games.''

Cal (16-6, 7-4) learned how hot USC has become, even though the Bears started out playing as well as they did in Thursday's upset of UCLA.

The Bears held a 36-30 lead with 5:35 left in the first half, when USC got a boost from its reserves and never looked back. Freshman Jarvis Turner, juniors Gary Williams and Gary Johnson and Crouse spurred an impressive turnaround.

USC outscored the Bears 22-7 the rest of the half, as Turner and Williams each had six points and Crouse added five.

The Trojans opened the second half with a 16-6 run that gave them a 68-49 lead with 12:17 remaining, and Cal was unable to get closer than nine points the rest of the game.

Crouse (20 points, nine rebounds) was instrumental in USC's comeback. He had only seven points at halftime, but was challenged by Bibby in the locker room to play with the same intensity he displayed in the first game against Cal, when he scored 21 points.

``What I tried to do is get David Crouse going,'' Bibby said. ``We wanted to get David Crouse the ball.''

The other critical factor was Stais Boseman's defense on guard Ed Gray, the Pac-10's leading scorer. Gray had only eight points in the first half, as Boseman chased the Cal guard all over the court.

When the teams met at the Cow Palace last month, the Trojans tried a zone defense and Gray burned USC with 28 points.

``This is the Stais Boseman I've been waiting to see,'' Bibby said. ``He's the best defensive player in the Pac-10 and his offense is coming around.''

Boseman led USC with 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

Notes: Cal forward Tony Gonzalez did not attend the game because he flew to Indianapolis for the NFL scouting combine. A tight end, Gonzalez is projected to be a top-10 pick. . . . USC scored 93 points and shot 53.7 percent against a Cal team that was ranked first in points allowed (66.1) and field-goal defense (39.6 percent).

A SEASON OF FIRSTS

USC is in first place in the Pac-10 this late in the season for the first time since the 1984-85 season, the last time USC won the conference title.

USC has won four straight games for the first time this season.

USC defeated Cal for the first time since 1994.

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Chart

Photo: Gary Williams, who sparked USC toward the end of the first half and finished with 10 points, tries to get away from three Cal defenders.

Associated Press

Chart: A SEASON OF FIRSTS (see text)