Tag: USC basketball

USC No. 3, Notre Dame No. 5 in USA TODAY Sports Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll

No. 3 versus No. 5. USC against Notre Dame in women’s basketball this Saturday in the Galen Center is a top-five showdown. It’s must-see TV on NBC.

The main event this weekend for USC sports fans is actually not one event. It’s two. USC football versus UCLA is always a big deal, regardless of the records of the two teams. However, this Saturday, another massive showdown involving USC will take place. The Trojans and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish will meet in women’s basketball. Both teams are in the top five of the latest USA TODAY Sports Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll.

USC fans will be able to attend both games on Saturday. USC-Notre Dame is at the Galen Center and will start just after 1 p.m. local time in Los Angeles. The USC-UCLA football game will start just after 7:30 p.m. local time in Pasadena. That offers Angelenos more than enough time to leave Galen and get to the Rose Bowl Stadium in time for kickoff, even with LA’s infamously nasty traffic.

The USC-Notre Dame game is part of a television tripleheader on NBC. The network has both USC games — women’s hoops and football — with the big Notre Dame-Army football game sandwiched in between at 4 p.m. Pacific time. USC-Notre Dame women’s basketball, though, gets the party started at 1.

USC and Notre Dame share spots in the top five of the USA TODAY Sports Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll with No. 1 South Carolina, No. 2 UConn, and No. 4 Texas.

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Eric Musselman loses first game as USC basketball coach

USC shot over 55 percent in the first half and under 34 percent in the second half. USC was inconsistent at both ends of the floor and paid the price.

The USC men’s basketball season finally encountered a moment of real adversity on Sunday night in the Galen Center. Eric Musselman lost his first game as the Trojans’ bench boss. USC fell 71-66 to California in a weird game which took a drastic turn in the last six and a half minutes.

The score of the Cal game was 43-42 USC at halftime. The Trojans played a racehorse game against UT Arlington last week in which defense was optional. USC led 51-42 at halftime of that game and then continued to play ineffective defense in the second half. USC’s offense was able to overcome its lack of defense in a 98-95 win. The Cal game looked like another shootout after one half, and USC’s defense was plainly ineffective for most of the night. USC’s guards were beaten on the dribble. They couldn’t keep Cal’s guards out of the paint, which created all sorts of opportunities for the Golden Bears.

However, midway through the second half, the game began to take on different dimensions. USC began to dig in on defense. The faucet of points for Cal got shut off. USC gained a 64-63 lead with just under seven minutes left in regulation and was showing signs of steering this game in a different direction.

If you were watching the game, you would have assumed that if USC could get stops and hold Cal to a modest point total in the second half, the Trojans would have won. After all, they shot over 55 percent from the field in the first half. They were on pace to score 86 points at halftime. If USC held Cal to 29 second-half points, 71 for the full game, that pointed to a USC win.

Except it didn’t.

The Trojans’ offense, which flowed so well in the first 30 minutes, came to a grinding halt in the last 6:30. USC scored exactly two points in that span of time. Leading scorer Desmond Claude missed two huge free throws with a little over two minutes left. Terrance Williams had a wide-open 3-pointer in the last minute to give USC the lead, but it wasn’t even close. The Trojans went stone cold, dying at the 3-point line and not getting enough free throw opportunities to collect cheap points. A night which started with bad defense ended with bad offense, and USC fell short against its former Pac-12 neighbor.

Eric Musselman didn’t have time to recruit his first USC roster. Remember, this roster was almost completely created from the transfer portal. We are seeing the limitations of that roster. Musselman has to find a way to get everyone to contribute more at both ends of the floor.

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JuJu Watkins scores 1,000th USC point as Trojans hammer Santa Clara

JuJu Watkins is averaging 26.3 points per game at USC — no, not this season, but in her full USC career, which spans 38 games. She is something else.

JuJu Watkins reached and then passed the 1,000-point mark as a college basketball player on Friday afternoon. USC women’s basketball blasted Santa Clara, 81-50, to move to 4-0 on the young season. Watkins reached the milestone in her 38th game as a Trojan, which is quite remarkable when you do the math.

If you get out a calculator, 38 multipled by 20 equals 760. Right there, that tells you Watkins is averaging well above 20 points per game in every USC game she has played, going back to the start of her freshman season. Watkins is averaging 26.3 points per game — not this season, but in her entire USC career … and she’s just four games into her sophomore season! She is going to get even better. She is going to learn even more about how to break down opposing defenses. The 26.3-points-per-game average is not the ceiling. This begins to give basketball fans a clearer, sharper idea of how genuinely excellent JuJu Watkins has been in her USC career, which is closer to its beginning than its eventual end.

The really good news for USC beyond Watkins’ milestone on Friday against Santa Clara is that the defense is very consistent. USC is allowing an average of under 48 points per game this season. It has allowed more than 50 points in only one of its four games thus far. Assistant coach Beth Burns has her players focused at that end of the floor, while Lindsay Gottlieb’s offense is more of a work in progress.

The lingering concern for USC is 3-point shooting. The Trojans hit only 6 of 28 triples (21.4 percent) for the second time this season. USC has hit under 22 percent of its 3-pointers in three of its four games. That needs to improve. It is the one relatively consistent flaw for this team, which is checking all the other boxes.

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USC overcomes weak defense to survive UT Arlington, stay undefeated

The Golden State Warriors and USC basketball have both beaten the Mavericks this week. USC beat the UT Arlington Mavericks in the Galen Center.

In November, there is no time to worry about style points. This is the month of the college basketball season when teams play smaller conference opponents in an attempt to gain confidence and rhythm. Losing one of these “buy games” can be devastating for a team’s NCAA Tournament chances. The main thing is to win, no matter how ugly or shaky the performance might be. USC basketball and Eric Musselman have managed to stay unbeaten despite two very unsteady performances. Concerns exist, but as long as the wins keep coming, the season is on schedule. USC did stay on schedule with a 98-95 win over UT Arlington on Wednesday night in the Galen Center.

USC had a nine-point halftime lead, 51-42. The Trojans did not play good defense in the first half but still had a working margin because they shot the ball extremely well. They naturally hoped to build their lead in the second half, but UT Arlington was very “Mavericky.” The Mavs kept tossing in 3-pointers to reduce USC’s lead. UT Arlington finished the game 16 of 24 on 3-pointers, giving the Mavericks a plus-30 margin in points scored from 3-pointes. UTA had 48 points on 16 triples, whereas USC had just 18 points on six long balls.

Arlington led 88-86 late in the game. USC was staring down the barrel of a horrible loss. Fortunately, Desmond Claude stepped up for the Trojans. He scored USC’s next eight points to give the Men of Troy a 94-90 lead with 19 seconds left. Claude finished with 26 points on a night when USC hit over 55 percent of its field goal attempts. Josh Cohen scored 19 points. Terrance Williams made his USC debut and added 18 for the victors, who are 3-0 this season and will try to win with a little less drama the next time they take the court.

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USC women’s basketball gets the shooting improvement it needed

Focus less on the fact that USC won a game by 85 points. Focus more on the fact that USC hit 3-point shots and got Talia von Oelhoffen involved. That’s big.

The USC women’s basketball team won a game by 55 points this past Saturday against Cal Poly. The scary part, as we noted in the recap of the game, was that the Trojans actually didn’t shoot well. They hit just 6 of 28 3-pointers and hit under 45 percent of their shots. They still won by 55. We said that if USC ever starts shooting 3-pointers consistently, then you’re going to see what a true juggernaut really looks like.

See Tuesday night’s 124-39 win over Cal State Northridge. This is what happens when USC — an excellent defensive team with strength inside and lots of playmakers who can get to the basket — is able to also hit 3-pointers and leave defenses completely helpless.

USC made 17 of 36 3-pointers. When a team with JuJu Watkins and Kiki Iriafen — two players who are able to get to the basket on most occasions — then has the perimeter shooters tossing in threes, there’s simply no avenue for an opposing defense to stop this team. There’s simply no way anyone will beat USC when the Trojans are scorching the nets from long distance. The one real concern surrounding this team is precisely that the 3-pointers won’t fall. Defenses can then pack the paint to stop JuJu or Kiki on drives to the basket. That’s when everything can get gummed up and stuck.

If the threes are falling, USC becomes a wrecking ball for any opponent.

That’s the good news from Tuesday’s very large, very easy win. If the shooters stay in a groove all season, USC isn’t going to lose very much.

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Lindsay Gottlieb offers realism about USC, even as Trojans try to address flaws

Lindsay Gottlieb wants to be patient while still setting the bar very high for her team. She has to fix problems but not panic when they emerge. It’s a balance.

The USC women’s basketball program carries huge expectations this season, as everyone knows. Managing those expectations is a real challenge. USC shouldn’t shy away from the expectations, just to be clear, but when one game doesn’t go perfectly, there’s no reason to panic and overreact. That’s really the key for the Trojans and coach Lindsay Gottlieb. There has to be an awareness of what the standard is, but also an awareness that the standard won’t be attained every night. Improvement is what matters.

Gottlieb said as much after USC’s 90-35 win over Cal Poly on Saturday, as reported by Luca Evans of the Orange County Register:

“Nobody’s winning a national championship on November – what is it, eighth? Whatever it is today,” Gottlieb said postgame. “Nobody’s getting — we can’t skip steps and fast-forward to another Elite Eight game … but what we can do is continue to push forward our identity.

Gottlieb is absolutely right to preach patience. Yet, she knows USC is not where it needs to be and is working hard to bring about needed improvements. USC has a growing concern behind the 3-point arc, going 7 of 39 from long range in two games so far this season. Talia von Oelhoffen failing to score and become the third main cog of the offense behind JuJu Watkins and Kiki Iriafen is also something USC needs to address. Gottlieb rightly notes that everything isn’t going to happen all at once, but the Trojans do need to make real and substantive advancements as they go along. Big games — Notre Dame on Nov. 23 and UConn one month later in December — are not that far away. USC has to be ready to meet the challenge.

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USC wins by 55 points, and the scary part is the Trojans didn’t shoot well

USC won by 55 points on Saturday despite shooting just 6 of 28 on 3-pointers. Imagine how great this team will be if it knocks down the long ball.

The USC women’s basketball team won a game by 55 points on Saturday against Cal Poly. Given that the margin was 55 points, 90-35, you might think the Trojans shot the ball well. Actually, they did not.

USC shot just under 45 percent from the field — not terrible, but certainly nothing special — and the Trojans were a bad 6 of 28 from 3-point range. Malia Samuels (3-5) and Rayah Marshall (1-1) shot the ball well from 3-point land, but all other USC players were a combined 2 of 22. Just imagine what will happen when this team shoots the ball with some degree of consistency from long range. USC was just 1 of 11 on threes in the season opener versus Ole Miss. USC is therefore 7 of 39 on triples for the season through two games, which is under 20 percent.

If there is a concern with this team — and we know it’s early in the season — it’s very clear. Perimeter shooting, if it doesn’t improve, will enable defenses to pack the paint and make it harder for every USC player to finish near the rim and get easy baskets or free throws. Lindsay Gottlieb can devise great sets, but if teams don’t respect USC’s shooting, opponents will protect the rim and force the Trojans to hit a lot of mid-range shots outside the paint.

To flip things around, however: If USC does begin to shoot well from 3-point land, opponents will be in an impossible position in their attempt to defend the Trojans. If USC can make threes at an efficient rate, JuJu Watkins and Kiki Iriafen will feast at the basket and score big.

Get into the gym and get that shooting stroke sorted out. USC has a clear priority after one week of play.

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The big loser in USC football’s quarterback change? Eric Musselman

Eric Musselman and USC are 2-0, but the football team was still the big story of the week due to its QB change. It’s a reminder about what gets the headlines.

Monday night at USC basketball was supposed to be all about Eric Musselman. Coaching his first game in charge of the USC men’s basketball program, the “Muss Bus” impressed in his debut. The Trojans dominated UT Chattanooga in a wire-to-wire 77-51 victory. Unfortunately for Musselman, however, he only had the spotlight for barely an hour after the game ended. That was because around 10 p.m. local time on Monday night in Los Angeles, it was reported that the football team was making a change at quarterback, and turning to Jayden Maiava to start against Nebraska.

Suddenly, Musselman and the basketball team were pushed to the back page. With the attention of USC fans naturally turning toward the big football news, they quickly forgot about the impressive performance from Musselman’s team in a game they had just watched.

Oh, and to top it all off, there was an election the next day — that was kind of important.

Fortunately for Musselman, Monday was only the first game of a long season. He and his team will have plenty of other opportunities to play their way back into the spotlight. USC beat Idaho State on Thursday in a game which was not on national television. It’s just as well: USC didn’t play particularly well. Yet, the Trojans are 2-0 and are trying to build something special under Musselman.

For the time being, however, being pushed aside by football in the news cycle must have been at least a little bit frustrating for the new head coach.

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NBA MVP visits USC as Eric Musselman focuses on improving team culture

A brush with stardom occurred for young Trojan hoopers: A 7-time NBA All-Star made an appearance at USC basketball practice this week.

The USC Trojans and Eric Musselman had a surprise visitor during their basketball practice earlier this week. Joel Embiid, a seven-time NBA All-Star for the Philadelphia 76ers, dropped by the Galen Center to watch USC basketball practice on Wednesday.

The 76ers were in Los Angeles on Wednesday to face the Clippers when the former MVP, who is currently sidelined due to a suspension, decided to visit the team.

Embiid comically towered over head coach Eric Musselman in a picture posted to Musselman’s X/Twitter account the same day.

Later that evening, Musselman attended the Clippers versus Sixers matchup and met up with former Trojans Caleb Martin and Ricky Council IV after the game, evidenced by another X/Twitter post.

Musselman is having an immediate impact on USC. He intends to start his tenure with a main focus on changing the culture of the team. Bringing in a former NBA MVP certainly helps to achieve that goal.

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USC endures frustrating night but survives Idaho State

USC overcame terrible free throw and 3-point shooting, plus multiple in-game injuries. The win over Idaho State was ugly, but it was also very important.

USC basketball started its season with a bang on Monday in a blowout of Chattanooga. The second game of the young season was a lot harder to watch. Thankfully, the Trojans were at least able to get a win, but there’s plenty to be concerned about after the 75-69 escape against Idaho State.

USC was favored by 23.5 points but went down to the wire, leading by only one point with 46 seconds left before Saint Thomas hit a decisive 3-pointer to rescue the Men of Troy. It was a night when hardly anything went right, but USC got the bottom-line result it needed. A loss to Idaho State would have been a hugely damaging result for the Trojans’ NCAA Tournament resume. That loss would have followed them all the way to Selection Sunday. USC avoided that stain and can try to figure out how to get better.

The first thing we have to mention about Thursday’s game in the Galen Center is how many injuries USC sustained. Matt Knowling got hurt. Jalen Shelley got hurt. Terrance Williams still wasn’t able to play; he missed the Chattanooga game as well. USC was shorthanded, and it showed.

USC also missed over 10 free throws and hit just 5 of 20 3-point shots. Those bad shooting numbers recalled the Andy Enfield era. The Trojans can’t continue to be that bad from the foul line and the 3-point arc.

Winning in spite of all those negative developments? It’s more of an achievement than some might think. The main thing: USC has to get healthy. The Trojans need their best players on the floor. That is their most direct path to improvement.

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