Tag: USC basketball

Rookie Wire has Onyeka Okongwu No. 2 in latest NBA Draft big board

The folks at USA TODAY’s Rookie Wire have put together an updated big board for the 2020 NBA Draft, and USC forward Onyeka Okongwu is No. 2.

The 2020 NBA draft class is officially finalized now that the deadline for prospective draft prospects to return to school has passed.

With that comes an update to Rookie Wire’s 2020 NBA draft big board, detailing the top-100 draft prospects now that the dust has settled.

The USC Trojans have one player, big man Onyeka Okongwu, on this list, coming in at No. 2 overall just behind guard LaMelo Ball.

Okongwu was No. 2 on Rookie Wire’s initial pass at a big board back in April, and it seems they have not changed their mind on the potentially high-impact defensive star from the Trojans.

Onyeka Okongwu projects as an immediate starter in the NBA and is likely the best defensive prospect at his position. He is a double-double machine who averaged 16.2 points with 8.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game during his freshman season at USC.

A big board is not the same as a mock draft, and most feel that Okongwu will be selected in the 5-8 range – depending on how the NBA draft lottery shakes out and which teams are in the market for a defensive-minded big man.

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Demar DeRozan scores 27 as NBA returns after 4 month hiatus

The NBA is back, and four USC Trojans are playing for a chance to reach the playoffs and play pro basketball in September.

The NBA is officially back in action, following a four and a half month hiatus thanks to a COVID-19 outbreak in mid-March.

The league is playing an abbreviated eight game regular season finale, featuring 22 teams, and then will head into the playoffs with the usual 16 teams.

Four former USC Trojans are on NBA rosters for the time being: DeMar DeRozan and Chimezie Metu (Spurs) De’Anthony Melton (Grizzlies) and Nikola Vucevic (Magic).

Metu did not play for San Antonio in their first game back, a win over the Sacramento Kings. DeRozan did, however, and he paced the team with 27 points, 10 assists and five rebounds – his seventh double-double of the ‘season’.

Vucevic looked excellent for the Magic in their win over the Nets, dropping 22 points with seven rebounds and five assists.

Lastly, Melton came off the bench for the Grizzlies in their thrilling overtime loss to the Blazers, where he dropped seven points with four rebounds and a pair of assists.

The Spurs, Grizzlies, Blazers and Magic are all teams that are fighting for a spot in the playoffs, and these next seven games will be crucial for each squad if they want to keep playing into September.

Keep checking back for more updates on the Trojans in the NBA and their playoff aspirations.

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USC basketball: Trojans in top-10 for Instagram star Mikey Williams

The USC Trojans are among the top-10 schools for the National Freshman of the Year, Mikey Williams, a point guard out of San Diego.

The USC Trojans are continuing to look for ways to upgrade their guard play in the future, and going after the MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year is a darn good start.

Mikey Williams, one of the best prospects in the class of 2023 and already an Instagram sensation, listed his top 10 schools in a tweet on Wednesday evening and USC made the list.

The Trojans were included alongside Arizona State, Memphis, San Diego State and Kansas, as well as five HBCUs: Alabama State, Hampton, NC Central, Tennessee State and Texas Southern.

Williams is among a handful of recruits who is considering attending a Historically Black College in order to help bring notoriety to these universities in light of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Williams has posted numerous high-flying dunking videos as a young teenager, helping his accrue over 2.3 million followers on Instagram.

Lastly, Williams is pretty good at basketball as well, earning the No. 3 ranking in the class of 2023 by ESPN after averaging 29.9 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game his freshman season in San Diego.

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USC Basketball: Pair of Trojans sign new contracts overseas

Former USC Trojans guards Daniel Utomi and Elijah Stewart each inked new contracts in Europe for the upcoming basketball season.

A pair of former USC Trojans basketball stars, guard Daniel Utomi and guard Elijah Stewart, recently signed new contracts overseas.

Utomi signed with Slask Wroclaw in Poland, while Stewart inked a deal to remain in Finland for another year, leaving Helsinki to join Karhubasket.

Utomi appeared in 31 games for the Trojans last year after coming over as a graduate transfer from Akron.

The six-foot-six combo guard started 16 games and averaged 8.2 points and 3.8 rebounds, providing a reliable scoring option off the bench. He will head over to Poland for his first professional basketball gig, joining a team that has won 17 championships in their home country.

Stewart was with the Trojans from 2014-2018, appearing in 138 games and averaging 10.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists.

The six-foot-five guard spent the 2018-2019 season bouncing between three different G-League teams – Stockton, Wisconsin and Fort Wayne – before spending the 2019-2020 season with the Helsinki Seagulls in the Finnish league, where he averaged 18 points and 5.2 rebounds in 33 games played.

Now, he’ll move to another side of the country to continue his career, which is cleary off to a strong start across the water.

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Let’s hope USC doesn’t lose their basketball non-conference slate

The USC Trojans are slated to face Kansas and Gonzaga in their non-conference basketball schedule, assuming it doesn’t get altered.

Thanks to COVID-19, the USC Trojans are facing a 2020 football season without Notre Dame on the schedule for the first time since 1945, and without perhaps the most exciting non-conference game of the college football season, a date with Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

The PAC-12 is still planning to go forward with their regular conference slate, and while there are reasons to speculate if that will even happen, there’s little doubt the loss of Alabama and Notre Dame hurts the school’s appeal this upcoming season.

While it’s too early to tell, it’s also entirely possible USC’s basketball team could suffer a similar fate, if the PAC-12 decides to apply the same rule to their other big-time sport in order to buy time and hopefully limit travel.

For USC’s basketball squad, that will cost them two really big opponents: Gonzaga and Kansas.

The Trojans locked up a home-and-home with the Jayhawks back in March, and are scheduled to take them on at Allen Fieldhouse on December 19, with Kansas returning to play USC at home on December 21, 2021.

Gonzaga and USC are going to face off in the Phil Knight Invitational in Portland on November 17. It will be the first time USC has played Gonzaga in the Mark Few era. The Trojans boasting a 2-0 record against the Zags all-time, although both games took place in the early-1990’s.

Gonzaga and Kansas both represent excellent, early season opportunities for a young Trojans squad to demonstrate their talent and gain experience against top-tier opposition. Losing those will force the Trojans to grow on the fly in conference play, which could hurt their chances of getting an early-seed in the conference, and NCAA, tournament.

Beyond that, it robs the fans of a chance to see star freshman Evan Mobley against some of the elite big men in the country in primetime, something that the PAC-12 and the rest of the NCAA will surely want to avoid if possible.

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2021 point guard Zaon Collins lists USC Trojans among top-4

The USC Trojans are among the top-4 schools for Bishop Gorman point guard Zaon Collins.

The USC Trojans continue to look for their next great point guard, and Bishop Gorman high schooler Zaon Collins could be the guy.

Collins revealed his top-4 options on Twitter on Monday, and USC was among those listed; along with UNLV, Arizona and Arizona State.

Collins appears interested in staying close to home, with all four schools a drivable distance away from Bishop Gorman’s campus.

Collins just jumped into the top 50 on 247Sports’ rankings, coming in at No. 46 overall and No. 5 among point guards.

The speedy point guard lacks build, but his quickness, vision and ball-handling skills are appealing – and USC’s need for a point guard in the future makes him an important target.

From 247 recruiting analyst Josh Gershon:

Adding strength and gaining confidence as perimeter shooter will be important for hitting ceiling. High major starter whose NBA upside will be determined by outside jumper and physical development.

USC is expected to go into 2020-2021 with Ethan Anderson running the point, and graduate transfer Tahj Eaddy taking the ball on occasion as well.

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Trojan’s Front Court Depth Too Much For Nevada, As Wolf Pack Fall 76-66

Game Recap: USC 76, Nevada 66 26 Points From Jazz Johnson Not Enough As Wolf Pack Loses To USC At Home. Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire Nevada suffers second loss of the season at home to USC. This game should have been circled on Nevada …

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Game Recap: USC 76, Nevada 66

26 Points From Jazz Johnson Not Enough As Wolf Pack Loses To USC At Home.

Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Nevada suffers second loss of the season at home to USC. 

This game should have been circled on Nevada fan’s calendars for a while now. Aside from maybe fellow Pac-12 member Utah’s game to start the season, Saturday’s game against the Trojans of Southern California was one of the tougher games on the Wolf Pack’s schedule.

Jalen Harris went into Saturday’s game pumped up after a 24 point performance in his first full game back in almost two years on Tuesday night. But that three-headed attack turned into a solo scoring effort, as senior guard Jazz Johnson led the team in scoring with 26 points on the night but failed to receive much help.

The Wolf Pack shot about 32% from the field as a team and only one other player besides Johnson scored in double figures. That was senior guard Lindsey Drew who despite having 12 points, 6 rebounds and five assists, has had a bit of an off week compared to week one of the season. Junior guard Jalen Harris scored 9 points going 3/19 from the field and 1/8 from three-point range. Nevada struggled against a larger team with a deeper bench but made it competitive enough to close the gap to ten as time expired.

One big issue for me going into Saturday was USC’s front court dept. Not only is there freshman Isaiah Mobley and Nick Rakocevic, but leading scorer, rebounder and blocker Onyeka Okongwu. Okongwu is a bulldozer at 6’9 245, but even he had a though night against the Wolf Pack. Okongwu finished with 11 rebounds and a block but only scored 6 points on 3/8 shooting.

Senior Nick Rakocevic led the Trojans with 24 points and 11 rebounds followed by graduate transfer Daniel Utomi who had 12 points and 4 rebounds. This was the biggest test of the season so far for Steve Alford‘s squad and they played well against a deeper PAC-12 team, though this was a perfect example of this Wolf Pack team playing through depth and chemistry issues in Alford’s first season.

 Up Next: The Wolf Pack take on the Davidson Wildcats in North Carolina on Tuesday at 7:00PM EST/4:00PM PST. The Wildcats are 1-2 on the season but were predicted to finish 2nd in the Atlantic 10 and bring back reigning Atlantic 10 player of the year Jon Axel Gudmundsson. Look for it to be a battle of the back courts on Tuesday, as Davidson has another two-way threat in junior guard Kellan Grady.

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Nevada VS USC: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Livestream, Odds & More

Nevada VS USC: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Livestream, Odds & More Nevada returns to action on Saturday night in Reno to face off against another Pac-12 team. This time it is the 3-0 USC Trojans. Contact/Follow @BrandonGBlake & @MWCwire Can …

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Nevada VS USC: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Livestream, Odds & More

Nevada returns to action on Saturday night in Reno to face off against another Pac-12 team. This time it is the 3-0 USC Trojans.

Contact/Follow @BrandonGBlake & @MWCwire

Can The Wolf Pack Defeat USC For A Second Straight Year?

WHO:  Nevada Wolf Pack (2-1) vs. USC Trojans (3-0)

WHEN: Saturday November 16th  — 8:00 PM PT

WHERE: Lawlor Events Center, Reno, NV

TV:  CBS Sports Network

STREAM: Get a one-week trial of FuboTV.

RADIO: Radio link for the Nevada Wolf Pack | Radio link for the USC Trojans

SERIES RECORD: USC leads series 2-1

ODDS: Not Available

The Nevada Wolf Pack return to action on Saturday night when they host the visiting USC Trojans. The game will tip-off at 8pm and will be on the CBS Sports Network. The Wolf Pack are taking on the Trojans for the second straight season on the hardwood. The last time Nevada played USC was last season when the Wolf Pack defeated the Trojans in LA 73-61.

Nevada is coming off a 80-73 victory over Texas-Arlington on Tuesday night in Reno. In the victory over the Mavericks, junior guard Jalen Hurts had a good performance. In his first full game back after missing the Loyola Marymount game, Harris scored 24 points (20 of those points came in the second half) to help Nevada pull away from Texas-Arlington.

Jalen Hurts was not the only Nevada player who had a good night on Tuesday. Wolf Pack guards Nisre Zouzoua and Jazz Johnson scored 16 points a piece and Lindsey Drew scored seven points and tallied eight rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks in the win on Tuesday night. 

The Wolf Pack will need those contributions from its top players when they take on the Trojans who are 3-0 to start the season. On paper, the Trojans have the look of a team that could possibly contend for a Pac-12 championship this season with their roster of talent.

The Trojans top players to watch for is freshman forward Onyeka Okongwu. Okongwu leads the Trojans in points (17.3ppg), rebounds (10.3rpg) and blocks (3.3bpg)  in the early part of the season. Okongwu is joined in the front court by senior forward Nick Rakocevic who is averaging 14 points per game and nine rebounds per game for the Trojans.

Together Okongwu and Rakocevic make up a talented front court for the Trojans. For the Trojans in the backcourt, the player to watch for is senior guard Jonah Mathews. Mathews is averaging close to 12 points per game and shooting 33 percent from the three for the Trojans. 

USC is bringing in a talented and undefeated team to the Lawlor Events Center on Saturday to take on the Wolf Pack. It will be interesting to see if Nevada is up to the challenge when they take on the Trojans.

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Nevada Wolf Pack Top UT-Arlington in Jalen Harris’ Return, 80-73

A Jalen Harris Return Was Just What The Doctor Ordered. Recap: Nevada 80, Texas-Arlington 73 Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire Jalen Harris’ presence was definitely felt as Nevada gets a win against UT-Arlington. After almost two years away …

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A Jalen Harris Return Was Just What The Doctor Ordered.

Recap: Nevada 80, Texas-Arlington 73

Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Jalen Harris’ presence was definitely felt as Nevada gets a win against UT-Arlington.

After almost two years away from the game Jalen Harris got to play his first full game of basketball on Tuesday night in the Lawlor Events center against a scrappy UT-Arlington Mavericks squad, and he didn’t disappoint. The former Louisiana Tech Bulldog has been a heralded transfer sitting on the bench in Reno since back under the last coaching staff. Many have waited to see Harris on the court and for those of us who watched the season opener anxiously against Utah, we felt a bit cheated.

Harris left that game in the first half and didn’t return going scoreless on 0-4 shooting and wore a boot on his right foot the remainder of the night. 

After undergoing X-ray testing last week which came back negative for any kind of broken bones, Harris was scheduled to undergo MRI testing this week. But surprised fans by showing up in the starting line up tonight against the Mavericks.

The junior guard led this Wolf Pack team with 24 points while grabbing 9 rebounds. His scoring provided a much needed break for senior guard Lindsey Drew (7 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists) who was our Mountain West Wire Player of the Week.

Nevada needed another scoring option to go a long with Lindsey Drew and Jazz Johnson, who scored 16 points going 5-11 from the field Tuesday night. Having Harris as a reliable third scoring option changed the offensive dynamic on the court and relieved Johnson and Drew of having to create scoring opportunities for themselves.

Help also came from senior guard Nisre Zouzoua who had a season high 16 points on 6-8 shooting and junior forward Robby Robinson helped out with 8 points and 8 rebounds.

Texas-Arlington looked good in the first half, keeping the game close and exchanging the lead throughout the second half. Radshad Davis led the Mavericks with a double-double, 14 points and 10 rebounds. Big man Jabari Narcis had 11 points on the night, which included 3 three pointers to go a long with 9 rebounds. Sunbelt preseason first-team guard Brian Warren had a tough night going 1-12 from the field ending up with 5 points. 

Steve Alford’s squad still seems to be getting use to each other’s play in live game situations and some guys are getting used to playing at the division one level. But they are doing a great job making adjustments during games and are 2-1 on the season. With Harris back and other players stepping up, it is going to be fun watching this team grow this season.

Next up: The Wolf Pack hosts Southern California on Saturday at home before heading on the road to face Davidson in North Carolina next week. The Trojans boast a fantastic freshmen front court and will be the biggest test of the season for the Wolf Pack thus far. 

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