USC Men's Basketball Wraps Up Non-Conference Play against the Banana Slugs

Sunday, December 21

Los Angeles, Calif.

1 p.m.

USC

UC Santa Cruz

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USC Men's Basketball Wraps Up Non-Conference Play against the Banana Slugs

December 20, 2025 | Men's Basketball

Game Notes (PDF)

This is the first meeting between USC and UC Santa Cruz.

LOS ANGELES – USC Men's Basketball (11-1, 1-1 Big Ten) will play its last game of 2025 against the UC Santa Cruz Slugs on Sunday, Dec. 21.

WHEREABOUTS
Game #13 vs UC Santa Cruz
Sunday, Dec. 21, at 1 p.m.
Galen Center | Los Angeles, Calif.
TV: Big Ten Network

LAST TIME OUT
USC dominated the UTSA Roadrunners 97-70 at the Galen Center, seeing five Trojans in double digits. USC shook off a slow start in the first half, during which the lead changed hands seven times. The Roadrunners showed off a quick hot hand, knocking down four shots from downtown by the 9-minute mark. The Trojans then ran off with a commanding 17-0 run over the span of four minutes. They kept finding answers in the paint and maintained the lead to take the victory.

Ezra Ausar posted his first double-double as a Trojan with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Chad Baker-Mazara was just behind him with 20 points and five assists. Ryan Cornish had himself an all-around showing, setting season-highs in scoring (18), three-pointers (4 3PM), assists (3) and steals, while registering his first block on the season.

SCOUTING THE SLUGS

UC Santa Cruz is 6-6 (.500) on the season.
The team is paced by center Joseph Espy's 16 points per game and 8.7 boards per game. Forward Leo Wagner and wing player Caden Breznikar also average double figures in scoring.
Santa Cruz is coming off a 67-58 win over Pomona-Pitzer. Espy put up his fifth double-double of the season with a game-high 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Wagner is the Slug's most efficient scorer, making over 61% from the field and 47% shots from beyond the arc. He currently leads his conference in field-goal percentage and is second for three-point percentage.
Breznikar averages nearly four assists per game. He recorded a career-high seven assists vs Lewis & Clark on Dec. 7.
Santa Cruz outrebounds its opponent nearly 38-32.
In all six of their wins, the Slugs have made at least five three-pointers.
The Slugs return eight players from last year, while welcoming four freshmen and two walk-ons.
Santa Cruz competes in the Coast to Coast Athletic Conference (C2). It finished fourth in the league last year (12-13).
Head Coach Matt Malone is in his fifth year leading the program.

NEW KID IN TOWN
Graduate transfer guard Kam Woods signed with USC on Dec. 18, 2025, giving the Trojans much-needed backcourt depth. The journeyman point guard comes to USC from Robert Morris, where he and Amarion Dickerson helped the Colonels reach the NCAA Tournament. Last year, Woods was an All-Horizon League Second Team and a 2024-25 Barbasol Horizon League All-Tournament Team honoree while leading the team with 14.4 points and 5.2 assists per game

Woods has averaged 12.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 97 career Division I games. The Bessemer, Ala. native began his career at Troy before transferring to Northwest Florida State College, where he was a 2022 NJCAA Division I National Champion. From there, he spent one season apiece at North Carolina A&T and NC State before transferring to Robert Morris.

BROWNELL'S BASKETS
Jaden Brownell has been coming off the bench for USC this season, lighting a spark on offense for the Trojans. Over the last six games, Brownell is averaging 10.5 points per game. He tied his season-high with 16 points against San Diego and set a season high with four made threes.

WATCH LIST ALERT
Earlier in December, Chad Baker-Mazara was one of 30 players to make the Lute Olson Award Early Watch List. This award is given annually to the top player in Division I college basketball.

MILESTONE ALERT
Head Coach Eric Musselman is close to hitting another milestone in his career as he is just one win away from his 250th career win. He boasts a winning percentage of .690 in his 11 seasons as a collegiate head coach.