USC Men's Basketball Renews Rivalry Against Cal

SUNDAY'S GAME -- The USC Trojans are set to host longtime Pac-12 rival Cal in a nonconference game at the Galen Center on Sunday, Nov. 17.  Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. PT.

GAME COVERAGE
STREAM: Big Ten Network (6:30 p.m. PT)
RADIO: ESPN LA 710 AM or USCTrojans.com/listen & USC Gameday App

NEW LOOK TROJANS -- The new look USC 2024-25 squad consists of 17 new faces and two returning members of last year's team - including 11 recruited from the transfer portal.

MUSSELMAN AT THE HELM: Eric Musselman was named the USC Men's Basketball Head Coach, Charles Griffin Cale Director of Athletics Jennifer Cohen announced on April 4, 2024.

Eric Musselman, 59, is a proven winner who has excelled at both the collegiate and professional levels, most recently at Arkansas where he led the Razorbacks to a 111-59 record in five seasons as the leader of the program.  The 111 wins in that stretch were the 13th-most among all Power 6 conference teams.  In eight of his nine seasons as a collegiate head coach at Nevada (2016-19) and Arkansas (2020-24), his teams won 20 or more games and he has compiled a 221-93 record for a 70.4 winning percentage.  Musselman has the 10th-best winning percentage of all active Division I coaches who have coached at least nine seasons.  Musselman has over 30 years of coaching experience, including 22 years as a professional and collegiate head coach.

A HISTORY OF WINNING -- USC has compiled a record of 1,715-1,262* in its 118 years of intercollegiate basketball competition.  USC has had a .500 or better record in 83 of its first 118 seasons. * 21 wins and one loss in 2007-08 vacated due to NCAA penalty, original record: 1,733-1,260.

MAGICAL BOTH WAYS -- Since the 2019 season, USC owns a 84-18 record when it scores 70 or more points.

THE GALEN ADVANTAGE -- USC is 214-84 at the Galen Center since it opened on Nov. 16, 2006.  USC is also 107-25 in nonconference games at the Galen Center.

TRANSFER TROJANS -- The Trojans are the most experienced Power 5 team in college basketball based on minutes played per game last season (327.6). The Trojan transfer class combined to average almost 150 points per game last season - the most incoming points of any transfer class in the nation.

USC added transfer talent from Michigan, Xavier, Yale, Northern Colorado/Illinois Chicago, UC San Diego, Texas Tech/Boise State, Washington, Bowling Green/Casper College/New Mexico State and Penn.

USC - CAL SERIES HISTORY -- Sunday will be the 272nd all-time meeting between the two former Pac-12 programs, and the first time the two schools will meet as nonconference foes since 1921. Cal holds a slight advantage over the Trojans at 137-134.

CAL (2-1) SCOUTING REPORT --
- Sophomore G Andrej Stojakovic is leading the Golden Bears in scoring this season, averaging 16 points per game while adding 6.0 rebounds per game. Stojakovic averaged 7.8 points per game and 3.4 rebounds per game last season at Stanford.
- Graduate G Jovan Blacksher Jr. is averaging 15.3 ppg and leading the Golden Bears with 3.3 assists per game. Blacksher Jr. spent five seasons at Grand Canyon, earning All-WAC first team honors in his junior year.
- In his three starts, graduate C Mady Sissoko is leading the Golden Bears in blocks at 1.7 per game. Sissoko is averaging 60% from the field and collecting six rebounds per game so far this season.
- Junior F BJ Omot is averaging 12.7 points per game and leading California with 1.3 steals per game.
- Four Golden Bears are averaging 50% from three-point range thus far, including junior G DeJuan Campbell, junior F Rytis Petraitis, and senior G Christian Tucker.
Campbell has started all three games for the Golden Bears in 2024-25. He is averaging 9.3 points per game and 2.3 rebounds per game in that span.
- Petraitis is currently averaging eight points per game and 3.3 rebounds per game in 15 minutes per game off the bench.
- Junior F Lee Dort is averaging nine rebounds per game in 53 total minutes so far for the Golden Bears. Dort is also leading the team in field goal percentage (.778)
- Cal is seeking its first road win at USC since Jan. 8, 2017 (74-73)

NEW HEIGHTS -- USC has eight players listed on the roster which are 6-7 or taller.  USC's average height per player is 6'54", which ranks 28th among all schools, according to Kenpom.com. The Trojans are also the fifth tallest team on average in the Big Ten.

COHEN'S CORNER -- Through three games, #33 Josh Cohen is averaging 14 points per game, three rebounds and five assists. Against Idaho State, Cohen led USC in scoring with 19 points and shot 66.7% from the field in 29 minutes played.

SAINT SHARES -- Trojan Saint Thomas has tallied 20 assists through three games as a Trojan. Against Idaho State, Thomas recorded nine first half assists. He's currently averaging 6.7 assists per game.

MIGHTY MINUTES -- Trojan Saint Tomas sits second overall in percentage of minutes played (85%) this season amongst Big Ten Conference players.

OH HOW THE TABLES TURN -- The Trojans have forced 49 turnovers, while committing only 25 through three games.
USC is also averaging 15 points per game off of turnovers, while limiting opponents to 10 points.

WIN MARGIN -- Through three games, USC is averaging a winning margin of 11.7 points.

HOME STAND -- USC will play six-straight home games to open the 2024-25 campaign before traveling to the Palm Desert for the Acrisure Thanksgiving Classic. The Trojans are set to travel out of the state just once in 2024 - a conference trip to Washington on Dec. 7.

LEADING SCORERS -- Trojans Desmond Claude and Josh Cohen lead the way for the Trojans in scoring this season, averaging 14 points per game. Through three games played, Claude and Cohen have each tallied 42 points.

STRAIGHT THEFT -- Sophomore Wesley Yates III leads USC in steals this season with six, averaging 2.0 steals per game in just 20 minutes played per contest (on average).

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Players Mentioned

Desmond Claude

Josh Cohen

Saint Thomas

Wesley Yates III