University Southern California Trojans
USC
North Carolina (Exhibition)
USC Men's Basketball Set for Exhibition Against North Carolina
October 08, 2026 | Men's Basketball
The Trojans will make their unofficial debut in Greensboro, N.C. on Friday
The game will be livestreamed on ACC Network, accessed via the ESPN family of networks. All pertinent information will be found on the men's basketball team's schedule page on usctrojans.com.
Friday's exhibition matchup between Eric Musselman and Michael Malone will pit two former NBA coaches — who were also sons of former NBA coaches — against each other. Musselman's father, Bill, was the head coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Cleveland Cavaliers and an assistant for the Portland Trailblazers, while 2023 NBA Champion Malone's father, Brendan, served as the head coach of the Toronto Raptors, interim coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers and was an assistant for five NBA teams.
This game will be the first of three road exhibitions for the Trojans, who are set to play at UC San Diego and San Diego State before opening the season at home against Milwaukee on Nov. 2.
TOP-25 TROJANS
USC is faring well in many preseason polls. So far, USC has ranked well in most reputable preseason polls with 11 top-25 appearances, three of which are in the top-15. Among notable outlets, Trojans rank No. 11 in ESPN's rankings, No. 13 by Fox Sports, 15 by Jon Rothstein and No. 17 by Andy Katz.
RICE EARNS PRESEASON RECOGNITION
Senior guard Rodney Rice made the 11-man Preseason All-Big Ten Team earlier this week. One of the most dynamic point guards in the conference, Last season, Rice averaged 20.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and a team-high 6.0 assists in six games before a shoulder surgery cut his season short.
He is the first player under Head Coach Eric Musselman to earn all-conference preseason recognition.
TROJAN TRIO
Alijah Arenas, Jacob Cofie and Rodney Rice give Trojans a solid core of starters from the 2025-26 season. The trio accounts for 38.0% of the team's returning minutes, per BartTorvik.
While Cofie has played with both Arenas and Rice, this year will mark the first time the three of them will play together, as injuries to Arenas and Rice kept them off the floor together.
PORTAL PROWESS
Head Coach Eric Musselman continues to be one of the best transfer portal recruits in the nation. On3 ranked USC's seven-man transfer portal fourth in the nation, EvanMiya ranked it 10th and Fansided and 24/7Sports ranked the Trojans 21st and 24th, respectively. Individually, KJ Lewis, Eric Reibe and Jalen Cox attracted several high-major offers in the offseason.
THE FUTURE IS NOW
USC's high school recruting class ranks No. 7 in ESPN's rankings, which is the best ranking USC has had under Eric Musselman. Christian Collins (No. 6, per ESPN), Adonis Ratliff (No. 23) and Darius Ratliff (No. 33) were all McDonald's All-Americans.
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON
Four players on USC's roster are sons of college basketball players: Alijah Arenas (Gilbert, Arizona, 1999-2001), Adonis and Darius Ratliff (Theo, Wyoming, Rodney Rice (Rodney Sr., Boston College and Richmond, 1983-88). Two of them, Gilbert Arenas and Rodney Rice Sr., have played in the Sweet 16.
NBA PEDIGREE
USC has three players who are sons of NBA All-Stars, which is tied with Duke for the most in the nation: Alijah Arenas (Gilbert, 2002-2012), plus Adonis and Darius Ratliff (Theo, 1995-2011).
Gilbert was a three-time NBA All-Star who played for four teams during his career, including a stint on the Warriors playing for Eric Musselman.
One of the best shot blockers of all time, Theo Ratliff was an NBA All-Star and a two-time all-defensive team selection throughout his 16-year career. Musselman coached him during their stint with the Atlanta Hawks.
WE'RE LOVING IT
USC leads the nation with five former McDonald's All-Americans on the roster: Alijah Arenas, Christian Collins, Adonis and Darius Ratliff, plus Eric Reibe. Duke and Michigan have three apiece, while Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and UConn have two.
SEEING DOUBLE
Adonis and Darius Ratliff make USC is one of seven teams in the nation with a set of twins on the roster. They are also the second set of twins Eric Musselman has coached, joining NBA players Caleb and Cody Martin during Musselman's time at Nevada from 2017-19.
BOUNCE BACK
Andy Katz named USC the No. 1 bounce-back team in the nation for the 2026-27 season. Historically, the numbers back it up: Throughout his stops at Nevada and Arkansas, Coach Eric Musselman surpassed the previous season's win total in each of his first three seasons.
TESTING THE WATERS
Alijah Arenas and Jacob Cofie earned valuable experience by going through the pre-draft process last season. Cofie, in particular, was one of the few players who was brought up to the NBA Combine after an impressive showing at the G League Combine. Both players returned to USC.
RUN IT BACK
Senior guard Rodney Rice returned to USC after playing just six games last year before sustaining a season-ending shoulder injury. Before his injury, Rice made the Preseason Jerry West Award Watch List and averaged 20.3 points, 0.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and a team-high 6.0 assists. He also recorded the second triple-double in USC history against Illinois State.
COFIE TIME
Junior forward Jacob Cofie is considered to be one of the best defensive forwards in the Big Ten. Cofie had 56 blocks and averaged 1.75 per game, which ranked No. 44 and No. 42 in the nation, respectively. Over the last 10 games of the 2025-26 season, he averaged 10.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.9 blocks while also shooting 37.5% from beyond the arc.
This season, Cofie was named the Big Ten Preseason Defensive Player of the Year by Basket Under Review and has garnered early NBA Draft buzz after strong showings at the G League and the NBA Combines.
AT LAST, ALIJAH ARENAS
Sophomore guard Alijah Arenas will play his first full season at USC after competing in just 14 games last year. The former five-star recruit faced plenty of adversity during his freshman season — first by getting in a near-fatal car crash, then by sustaining a knee injury that sat him out until January. He also played through an ankle injury once he returned.
Arenas showed promise throughout the year, averaging 14.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists while making 13 starts. He finished in double-figures eight times in his last 10 games, including a stretch of three-straight 20-point outings against Indiana (29 points), Penn State (24, plus the game-winner) and Ohio State (25 points).
THIRD TIME'S THE CHARM
After being recruited by Eric Musselman three times, senior guard KJ Lewis committed to USC over the offseason after a breakout season at Georgetown, in which he was an All-Big East Third Team selection and led the Hoyas with 14.9 points per game.
Known for his defense and willingness to rebound, Lewis ranked second on the team with 5.1 rebounds and led the team with 2.1 steals per game, the latter of which ranked second in the Big East.
CHRISTIAN, YOU'RE A STAR
Christian Collins is an LA guy through and through. A former child actor and model, Collins was on an episode of Key and Peele and had several roles in commercials before he stopped as a 12 year old. Not long after, Collins was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, a rare condition impacting growth and lung capacity. He went from being on JV as a freshman to being one of the nation's top-10 recruits as a senior before committing to stay home to play at USC.
CLASS OF THE CONFERENCE
USC is one of six teams in the nation with four or more players who earned all-conference recognition at some point in their careers.
Jalen Cox was a two-time All-Patriot League selection and a three-time Defensive Team selection; Jadis Jones was a two-time All-OVC Team selection and the 2025 OVC Freshman of the Year; KJ Lewis was an All-Big East Third Team and Pac-12 Freshman Team selection; plus Isaac Bruns was an All-Summit League honorable mention selection in 2025.
GOING BACK TO CALI
With the addition of View Park native Jalen Cox, the Trojans have three players with LA ties: Cox, Alijah Arenas (Woodland Hills) and Christian Collins (Inglewood). Arenas was ranked No. 3 in California according to ESPN's 2025 recruiting rankings, while Collins was No. 1 in ESPN's 2026 recruiting rankings.
1,000-POINT CLUB
This season has opportunities for more Trojans to hit 1,000 career points. Currently, three Trojans have reached that milestone: Isaac Bruns (1100), Jalen Cox (1084) and KJ Lewis (1037).
Jadis Jones (842), Joshua Hugnes (759), and Rodney Rice (678) have less than 500 points to go to reach this milestone.
STARTING 5
USC has three players who started in at least 50 games in their careers so far: Jalen Cox (76), Joshua Hughes (74) and Jadis Jones (59).
Jacob Cofie (48), Rodney Rice (38), Isaac Bruns (36) and KJ Lewis (33) have less than 20 starts to go to reach that milestone.
TRIPLE-DOUBLES
USC is the only team in the nation with multiple players who have recorded triple-doubles sometime in their careers: Rodney Rice had 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Illinois State, while Jalen Cox had 13 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Bucknell on Jan. 17, 2026.
GRAB YOUR PASSPORT
This year's team features three international players, which is the most Eric Musselman has had on the same roster in his collegiate coaching career. Joshua Hughes hails from Australia, Onyeka Joe Agu is from Belgium and Eric Reibe is from Germany.
MULTI-SPORT STARS
USC has several players with a variety of athletic backgrounds.
Jadis Jones was an accomplished high school football player, who was an all-state selection and was once committed to play football at Coastal Carolina. Aaron Hunkin-Claytor also played football and notes his time as a quarterback helped him become a better pass-first point guard.
Jalen Cox was an accomplished track sprinter. After running the 1,500-meters as a child, he worked his way down to the sprints, where he excelled in the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes while running in several relays. He competed at Nike Outdoor Nationals in the 400-meter dash and Loyola High School's distance medley relay.
Jacob Cofie and Onyeka Joe Agu have soccer backgrounds. Agu, in particular, was a keeper and a defender for several competitive Belgium development teams before switching full-time to basketball at 17 years old. Cofie played both American football and soccer.
NEW HEIGHTS
USC has just two players listed at 6'3'' or shorter on the roster. The Trojans' average height is 6'7.79'' tall and is one of the few teams with multiple true 7-footers on the roster: Eric Reibe (7-foot-1) and Darius Ratliff (7-foot-0).
THE NEXT GENERATION OF THE NBA
With Adonis Ratliff and Darius Ratliff on the roster, USC has its third-straight recruiting class where the son of a former NBA player has joined the team. This tradition includes Bronny James (son of Lebron James), Alijah Arenas (son of Gilbert Arenas) and now Adonis and Darius Ratliff (sons of Theo Ratliff). DJ Rodman is also a part of this group, as he came to USC as a graduate student and is the son of Dennis Rodman.
COACHING STAFF FROM THE NBA
Several members of the USC Men's Basketball coaching staff has experience either coaching or playing in the NBA. Coach Eric Musselman spent 20 years in the coaching ranks from the NBA to the Development League, while also coaching the Venezuelan and Dominican Republic National Teams. Both Earl Boykins and Will Conroy played in the NBA. Along with that, Anthony Ruta has coaching experience in the NBA Developmental League.
TROJANS IN THE NBA
USC has 11 former players competing in the NBA this season:
- Isaiah Collier, Utah Jazz
- DeMar DeRozan, Denver Nuggets
- Bronny James, Los Angeles Lakers
- Jordan McLaughlin, San Antonio Spurs
- De'Anthony Melton, Golden State Warriors
- Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers
- Onyeka Okongwu, Atlanta Hawks
- Drew Peterson, Chicago Bulls
- Kevin Porter Jr., Milwaukee Bucks
- Saint Thomas, Philadelphia
- Nikola Vucevic, Orlando Magic
Saint Thomas is the first USC player coached by Eric Musselman to make an NBA roster.
SCOUTING THE TAR HEELS
Former NBA head coach and 2023 champion Michael Malone became the 21st coach in North Carolina history on April 7, 2026
The Tar Heels bring back five returners from last year, chief among them being Jarin Stevenson, who averaged 8.1 points per game and made 25 starts.
Malone brought in 11 newcomers, including four freshmen, six college transfers and one international player.
Virginia Tech transfer Neo Avdalas was one of the most sought-after players in the transfer portal after averaging 12.1 points and 4.6 assists per game for the Hokies last year.
