OMAHA -- O.J. Mayo sat at a dais deep inside the cavernous Qwest Center on Wednesday afternoon and addressed an array of topics at the behest of the 50 or so reporters gathered before him.
There was the USC freshman's longtime relationship with Kansas State forward Bill Walker, the challenge of facing Wildcats phenom Michael Beasley, and Mayo's affinity for playing for Coach Tim Floyd.
Meanwhile, things strolled along at a more leisurely pace inside the USC locker room as a handful of reporters trickled in and out.
Keith Wilkinson sat in one corner listening to country music on an iPod. Marcus Simmons pulled up a chair alongside teammate Kasey Cunningham and watched an animated comedy show on a laptop computer. Dwight Lewis propped up his feet on a table and looked bored.
It was as if these Trojans were groupies who had tagged along with a rock star on a cross-country tour.
But when Mayo, Beasley and their less heralded teammates share the same stage tonight as sixth-seeded USC plays 11th-seeded Kansas State in an NCAA tournament Midwest Regional first-round game, a role player could seize the spotlight and thrust himself into the national consciousness, if just for one day.
It happened last season to Daniel Hackett, a part-time starter for USC entering the NCAA tournament. Then the freshman found himself defending Texas' Kevin Durant, the national player of the year, during a second-round game.
"I had no idea what I was getting into," Hackett said. "It was my first time in the NCAA tournament. I thought about going out there and playing with no pressure and bringing as much energy as I could."
Hackett scored a career-high 20 points and held Durant mostly in check until the Trojans were comfortably on their way to an 87-68 victory that sent them to the Sweet 16 for the first time in six years.
Complementary players don't have to score in double figures or provide a lockdown defensive effort to make a difference in the postseason. If Simmons grabbed a key rebound or freshman guard Angelo Johnson made a crisp pass at precisely the right moment, that would be enough for Floyd.
"We're aware that in this tournament oftentimes different people grab the stage," Floyd said.
Kansas State's Blake Young, one of two senior starters often overlooked on a team that features Beasley and Walker, said his role is to fight for loose balls and try to shut down an opponent's top scoring guard, meaning he'll be matched up at times against Mayo.
