Toreros come to Las Vegas shorthanded

By Ryan Greene (contact)

Saturday, Nov. 15, 2008 | 2:05 a.m.

If overcoming adversity is something which good teams must be able to do, the University of San Diego men's basketball team will find out just how good it is right off the bat.

Second-year coach Bill Grier brings a patchwork lineup into today's 2:30 p.m. contest at the Thomas & Mack Center, with four players unavailable for two different reasons.

Junior guard De'Jon Jackson, who started all 36 games last season for the Toreros, is out with a knee injury.

Meanwhile, senior forward Gyno Pomare, sophomore guard Trumaine Johnson and sophomore forward Clinton Houston have all been suspended by Grier for violations of team rules.

Pomare will be reinstated for USD's home opener Tuesday night against UNR. Houston was given a six-game suspension, while Johnson is out until at least after the team returns from the Paradise Jam - essentially a five-game ban.

To put it in perspective, the four combined last season for 28.5 points per game (the team mean was 65.7) as the Toreros pulled off a memorable first-round overtime upset of Connecticut in the NCAA Tournament. Pomare was San Diego's second-leading scorer in 2007-08 (14.1 ppg) and its leading rebounder (7.4 rpg).

For now, the rest of the team has no choice but to deal. Coming into the season, San Diego was considered a potential postseason Cinderella candidate by many with all five starters from that team returning. But with three of them shelved on Saturday, it might take awhile to see if the Toreros really have it in them.

"Obviously this puts us at a huge loss to start the season, and I can't express how disappointed I am," Grier told the San Diego Union-Tribune. "It is very upsetting that it has come to this. But I have to look at the long-term good of this program in making decisions like this."

The roster has not been stripped completely bare, however, by the poor behaviors of some.

San Diego will trot out two of its starters from last season's 22-14 squad, including leading scorer Brandon Johnson. The 6-foot senior averaged 16.9 points per game a year ago, and in last Saturday's 71-67 exhibition victory over Cal State Los Angeles, he poured in 11 points. He's joined by fellow returner Rob Jones, who had 14 points and eight rebounds in the squeaker.

Also softening the blow will be 6-foot-9 junior center Roberto Mafra. The transfer from Southeastern Community College in Iowa turned some heads in his debut with a team-high 21 points coming on 9-of-10 shooting.

"Roberto did some very good things," Grier said of Mafra's grand entrance. "He's going to help us as the year goes on. He gave us a good presence inside."

It's scary to think what the Toreros could legitimately do in the West Coast Conference down the road with Mafra teaming up inside next to Pomare.

But that's all anyone will be able to do in that regard on Saturday - Think about it.

Another name to keep an ear open for will be that of another San Diego newcomer - Matt Dorr.

The sophomore transfer from Spokane City College scored eight points in the exhibition contest, connecting on two of his four 3-point attempts. At 6-foor-4, he's a more-than-capable distance marksman.

Much like UNLV, who plays four games in the next 10 days, San Diego also has a busy schedule on the horizon. Following Monday's home tilt with Reno, the Toreros head to the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands for three games in four days against Valparaiso, Iona and Wisconsin.