USC Men's Basketball Kicks Off 2025-26 Season With Exhibition At LMU

Saturday, October 18

Los Angeles, Calif.

6 p.m.

USC

LMU

Tickets

Team photo of USC Men's Basketball during a practice at Venice Beach

USC Men's Basketball Kicks Off 2025-26 Season With Exhibition At LMU

October 17, 2025 | Men's Basketball

This is the team's first tune-up before the start of the season.

By: Sammie Yen, USC Sports Brands and Communications Student Assistant

Head Coach Eric Musselman enters his second year at the helm of USC Men's Basketball, guiding the Trojans into their sophomore season in the Big Ten Conference. He is joined by returning assistant coaches Will Conroy, Todd Lee, Michael Musselman and Anthony Ruta. Completing the coaching staff is former NBA player Earl Boykins, who enters his first season as an assistant coach for the Trojans. Previously, Boykins was an assistant coach for the UTEP Miners from 2021-25.

During their Big Ten debut, USC showed flashes of momentum and wrapped up well at home, finishing 12-7 at Galen Center. The program sent two players, Saint Thomas (Philadelphia 76ers) and Chibuzo Agbo (San Antonio Spurs), to the NBA Summer League. With 13 newcomers, including 10 recruits from the transfer portal, and three returners, the Trojans are ranked as one of the nation's top transfer classes (No. 7 overall, No. 6 defensively). Ahead of the 2025-26 season, USC is ranked No. 22 according to KenPom and is listed as Andy Katz's No. 2 bounce-back team.

USC strengthens its perimeter rotation with Chad Baker-Mazara, Rodney Rice and Jordan Marsh. With his last two years at Auburn, Baker-Mazara (6-7, 175) brings deep March Madness experience to Southern California, posting a team-high 18 points in the Final Four matchup against Florida. As the team's second-leading scorer, he averaged 12.3 points per game and recorded 25 games in double-digit scoring figures. The two-way player from Santo Domingo shot nearly 45 percent from the field throughout the season. The graduate student brings versatility, size and scoring punch to USC, having 1,159 total points in his collegiate career. Hoops HQ tabbed Baker-Mazara as one of the top 50 players in college basketball this year. Rice (6-5, 200) averaged nearly 14 points per game at Maryland, scoring in double-digits 26 times for the Terrapins. Rice shot 43 percent from the field and 37 percent from deep, making him a top-scoring threat for USC. The four-star recruit combines shot creation with playmaking, making him an all-around dangerous offensive option. Rice was tabbed 16th in ESPN's top 100 transfer players. Another high-volume scorer is Marsh (5-10, 150), who boosted his scoring output from 6.2 points per game as a freshman at Appalachian State to 18.8 points per game as a sophomore at UNC Asheville – the highest scoring average in conference play since the 2019-20 season. Named Big South Conference Newcomer of the Year, Marsh became the school program's first player to earn the honor. The North Carolina native scored over 20 points in 14 matchups, with a career-high 33 points, six three-pointers and eight assists against High Point.

USC complemented that perimeter firepower with size, strength and versatility. Junior forward Ezra Ausar (6-9, 250) comes from Utah, where he shot nearly 52 percent within the arc and put up double digits in 20 contests, including a season-high 26-piece against BYU. He was the Utes' second-leading scorer. Ausar brings explosive energy and unique athleticism to the Trojans' interior. He is a defensive and offensive powerhouse, capable of setting a team's tempo. He is the second Trojan transfer to hit the 1,000-point mark in his collegiate career. Sophomore forward Jacob Cofie (6-10, 230) adds emerging talent to the Trojans, averaging 7.2 points and 4.6 rebounds in his first collegiate season at Virginia. He scored in double-digit figures in 10 games, and his mobility and length set him up to be a productive frontcourt piece.

The Trojans also landed defensive dominance in their recruits. Senior forward Amarion Dickerson (6-7, 200) was tabbed the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year, averaging 2.3 blocks across 35 games. Dickerson posted a steady 13.3 points per game, including a notable game-high 25 points in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Alabama. Dickerson is notorious as a disruptive off-ball presence. He can do it on both ends, shining in transition and having a good touch by the net. Another monster paint protector is junior center Gabe Dynes, who earned Horizon League All-Defensive Team honors. At a 7-5 frame, Dynes led the nation in blocks, with 104 across 34 games. The Dynes-Dickerson duo will give the Trojans a solid defensive backbone by the rim. Graduate forward Jaden Brownell (6-10, 235) averaged 14 points at Samford University while leading the team in field goal percentage, shooting at 51 percent. He scored double digits in 24 games, along with a career 27-point showing against George Mason.

The Trojans also bring in freshmen talent in Alijah Arenas, Jerry Easter II and Patrick O'Brien. Although Arenas is in recovery from an injury in the lead-up to the season, his role as a teammate and leader remains crucial. The five-star recruit from Chatsworth is the No. 3 player coming out of California and 13th in the nation. Averaging over 30 points per game throughout his high school career, Arenas led the Chancellors to win the 2024 State Regional Title and was a McDonald's All-American. From Toledo, Ohio, Easter (6-5, 185) is a unanimous four-star recruit, the No. 2 player in Missouri, and the No. 3 combo player in the nation. He was an EYBL Scholastic Champion last year for the Link Academy Lions, capturing the tournament title with 15 points, six assists and three rebounds. He was a two-time Player of the Year for the Lions. Easter is known as a confident scorer and creative facilitator, averaging nearly five assists per game. Guard Patrick O'Brien (6-5) averaged nearly 18 points and four assists at Cathedral Catholic High School, along with leading the team in rebounds at eight per game. In two years, he surpassed the 1,000-point mark. He'll bring shooting efficiency to the Trojans, knocking down 41 percent beyond the arc and 47 percent from the field. O'Brien is a two-time All-CIF First Team selection and earned All-State Open Division honors.

Graduate guards Ryan Cornish and EJ Neal Jr. add depth for the Trojans. Cornish (6-5, 170) averaged 17 points and nearly five rebounds in the 2024-2025 season, earning First-Team All-Ivy League honors. He finished with 1,014 total points at Dartmouth. He's demonstrated versatility in shot creation, from the three-pointer to attacking the paint. Neal (6-5, 200) led Sacramento State in three-pointers and scored in double digits 13 times.

Forward Terrance Williams II (6-7, 235) will come back to USC's frontcourt as a graduate student. Williams logged three double-digit performances during the 2024-2025 season, with a season-high 20-point performance against San Jose St (Nov. 20). Sophomore guard Jonah Goorin and sophomore forward Brit Burden also return to the Trojans after joining the team last season and making an appearance in the College Basketball Crown (Apr. 1).

With a mix of veteran transfers, proven scorers and top-tier talent, Musselman's 2025-26 squad will look to combine toughness, tempo and intensity. After laying the groundwork in their inaugural Big Ten campaign, the Trojans aim to make noise in the conference and during the non-conference slate. USC has 12 games set to air on the Big Ten Network, seven on FS1, six on Peacock, three on ESPN/ESPN2 and two on B1G+.

USC will compete in its first exhibition game of the season against Loyola Marymount on the road on Saturday, Oct. 18. Led by Head Coach Stan Johnson, the Lions finished the 2024-2025 season 17-15 overall and 8-10 in conference play, placing eighth in the West Coast Conference. USC holds a 9-2 series advantage against LMU, winning the last matchup 77-63 on Dec. 3, 2014. This Saturday, tipoff is set for 6 p.m. at Gersten Pavilion.