On Saturday evening against Michigan, USC men’s basketball experienced a Big Ten road atmosphere for the first time.
The Michigan fans were loud throughout the game. They cheered after their team’s baskets, and made noise when the Trojans were at the free throw line. Chants of “Let’s go Blue!” and “It’s great to be a Michigan Wolverine!” rang throughout the arena.
There was just one problem: The game was played at Galen Center in Los Angeles, more than 2,000 miles from USC’s campus.
The good news is that the fans came out in full force on Saturday. The announced attendance for USC-Michigan was 7,075, by far the highest for a Trojans home game this season.
The bad news for the Trojans is that at least half—if not more—of those were Michigan fans. In their first Big Ten home game against a non-former Pac-12 opponent, USC fans were outnumbered by the opposition in their own building.
Obviously, there are several things that should be noted. Michigan has a huge alumni network in Los Angeles. The game also took place during the middle of USC’s winter break, meaning that many students were not yet back on campus.
But still, to see the Trojans playing what felt like an away game in their own building was alarming. Hopefully it will serve as a wake up call to USC fans that this isn’t the Pac-12 anymore, and that they need to show out for each and every game.