Southern California wraps up its non-conference schedule Wednesday by hosting UTSA in Los Angeles for the second meeting between the programs.
USC (10-1) also had a scheduled Dec. 21 game against Brown canceled in response to last weekend’s shooting on the University of Providence campus.
With that game canceled, USC plans to field an opponent to replace Brown to avoid a layoff of more than two weeks before traveling to No. 2-ranked Michigan for a Big Ten Conference game on Jan. 2. It also gives the Trojans time to heal amid a rash of early-season injuries, including to versatile guard Rodney Rice.
Rice — averaging 20.3 points, six assists and 3.3 rebounds per game when he injured his shoulder Nov. 25 against Seton Hall — missed his fifth straight game last Sunday. USC scored a season-low 68 points against former Pac-12 counterpart Washington State, but dropped a seven-point victory to earn its 10th victory of the campaign.
“We’ve been scoring at such a rate that we’ve been successful in winning games with our offense,” said coach Eric Musselman, whose Trojans rank 40th nationally in offensive scoring with 87.5 points per game.
That included withstanding a nightly 4-of-13 shooting from the floor for Chad Baker-Mazara, USC’s leading scorer this season at 21.6 points per game. Jacob Cofie stepped up to score 21 points and grab 10 rebounds, providing an interior presence that Musselman believes will be key for the Trojans moving forward.
Cofie’s team-leading 7.1 rebounds per game can set the tone against a UTSA team that has struggled to give up rebounds.
The Roadrunners (4-6) were outscored 46-34 in an 88-64 loss Saturday at Colorado, UTSA’s third straight loss. At 42.7 rebounds per game, only two teams in the country give up more per game.
While UTSA is pulling down 13.7 offensive rebounds in a contest to rank in the top 50 nationally, the Roadrunners are also giving up 13.5 offensive rebounds on the other end. This is a byproduct of UTSA shooting a dismal 39.7 percent from the floor.
Jamir Simpson is the only Roadrunner averaging double figures at 18.9 points per game.
–Field level media
