University Southern California Trojans
USC Men's Basketball Hosts Santa Clara Monday
November 14, 2010 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 14, 2010
The USC Trojans (1-0) will host Santa Clara Broncos (1-0) in the second game of the season on Nov. 15 at 7:30 p.m. at the Galen Center. The game will be carried on flagship station 710 ESPN Radio and can be watched live at USCTrojans.com. USC has started 2-0 just one time (2009) in the last nine seasons.
BREAKING DOWN THE BRONCOS -- Santa Clara opened its season with a 82-77 win vs. CS Bakersfield on Nov. 12. Guard Kevin Foster had 19 points and center Marc Trasolini scored 17 points and had 10 rebounds. Santa Clara went 11-21 last season, but returns all five starters and 12 lettermen. Even though Santa Clara and USC are in the same state, it is still one of the longest road trips of the season for the Broncos as they will play 28 of 32 games in the state of California. Santa Clara was picked to finish fourth in the West Coast Conference preseason poll. The Broncos leading returning scorer is the redshirt sophomore Foster who scored 19.8 points per game as a freshman and earned freshman All-America accolades. Santa Clara is coached by former UCLA assistant Kerry Keating. USC is 21-8 all-time vs. Santa Clara, but lost the last meeting 74-54 on Dec. 2, 1983.
USC DEFEATS UC IRVINE IN OPENER -- USC defeated UC Irvine 62-49 in the season and home opener on Nov. 13 at the Galen Center, improving to 42-9 in its last 51 home openers. Nikola Vucevic led the way with his 11th career double-double, matching a career high with 19 points and pulling down 14 rebounds. Freshman guards Bryce Jones and Maurice Jones added 14 points and 13 points respectively. They became the first pair of freshman to start an opener for USC since Taj Gibson and Daniel Hacket on Nov. 16, 2006. USC outrebounded the Anteaters 47-26.
RIDER ON DECK -- The Rider Broncs, who USC faces at the Galen Center on Nov. 17, are another team returning a strong core, with eight lettermen and four starters back from a team that went 16-15 in 2009-10. Rider lost its season opener 77-67 at UMass and will host Lafayette on Nov. 14 before facing the Trojans. Head coach Tommy Dempsey's top returning scorer is senior guard Justin Robinson who averaged 13.3 points a year ago. Robinson, from London, England, spent last summer playing for the Great Britain National Team and is one of the more experienced point guards in the country with 92 career starts (6th in Division I). Included in Rider's nonconference victories last season was a win at Mississippi State. This will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
THE 2010-11 TROJANS -- USC returns two starters from last year's team which went 16-14 and tied for fifth in the Pac-10. Leading the way are forwards Nikola Vucevic (10.7 ppg, 9.4 rpg) and Alex Stepheson (8.4 ppg., 7.2 rpg), the top two returning rebounders in the conference. Veteran guards Donte Smith and Marcus Simmons will be joined in the backcourt by transfer Jio Fontan (eligible after 1st semester) and freshmen Maurice Jones and Bryce Jones. Freshmen Garrett Jackson and Curtis Washington, along with sophomore Evan Smith are expected to provide depth and fight for playing time at the forward position.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN -- There are 15 players on the 2010-11 USC men's basketball roster, including four walk-ons (James Dunleavy, Daniel Munoz, Eric Strangis and Tyler Sugiyama) and one player (Aaron Fuller) who will not be eligible until the 2011-12 season due to transfer rules. The Trojan team by class: Seniors (4): Dunleavy (Rs. Jr.-eligibility), Donte Smith, Marcus Simmons, Alex Stepheson, Juniors (4): Jio Fontan, Nikola Vucevic, Fuller, Strangis, Sophomores (3): Evan Smith, Daniel Munoz, Tyler Sugiyama (Rs. Fr.--eligibility), Freshmen (4): Garrett Jackson, Bryce Jones, Maurice Jones, Curtis Washington.
