University Southern California Trojans
USC Women Host Nonconference Clash With UC Santa Barbara
January 30, 2012 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 30, 2012
USC starts a busy week early with a nonconference showdown against UC Santa Barbara. When the Gauchos last visited the Galen Center, the Trojans captured a tight win during the first round of the 2011 WNIT last season. This week, USC (10-9) hosts UC Santa Barbara (8-11) for a nonconference game on Tuesday (Jan. 31) at 7 p.m. After that, it's back to Pac-12 play for the Women of Troy, who host Washington State at 7 p.m. on Thursday (Feb. 2) and Washington at 1 p.m. on Sunday (Feb. 5).
FOLLOW ALONG
Tuesday's game will be broadcast live through SCTV at usctrojans.com with live video along with audio provided by Jason Schwartz. Live stats through GameTracker for all games also will be available online through the women's basketball page at usctrojans.com.
IN THE NATION
USC opened the year with a spot in the national rankings for the first time since 2006, ranked at No. 23 in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN preseason polls. After the first week, USC moved up to No. 22 in the USA Today/ESPN poll and No. 23 in AP, but fell out of the rankings in week two. USC is currently unranked. UC Santa Barbara, WSU and Washington also are unranked.
GET TO GALEN!
USC students receive FREE ADMISSION to all home games! For other Trojan fans, tickets are available online or by calling 213-740-GOSC. Group discounts ($3 per person) are also available for groups of 10 or more. For families, pick up a Family 4-Pack for $40 to receive four tickets, four hot dogs and four drinks. CLICK HERE for more info on promos and tickets.
LAST WEEK
USC had a rough road trip last week, edged out by Colorado 69-67 on Thursday before getting passed up by Utah 63-55 on Saturday. USC was outrebounded in both games, making it three straight that the Trojans have been behind on the boards, matching their three-game losing streak. Against the Buffs, late CU free throws stole the game for Colorado in a 69-67 USC loss on Thursday. USC shot at a 49-percent clip down the stretch, but lost the ball on a late potential winning possession before the Buffs got to the line for the go-ahead scores with 1.2 ticks to go. USC and Colorado traded the lead 14 times and saw the score lock up even 11 times. USC broke the 10th tie and took a 67-65 lead with 45 seconds to go in regulation on a jumper from Cassie Harberts, only to have Colorado answer for a 67-67 tie with 30 seconds left. On USC's last possession, Briana Gilbreath got snarled with a Colorado defender, forcing a jump ball that took it into Colorado hands with 9 seconds left. On the other end, Colorado's Chucky Jeffery tried for a baseline drive, and Gilbreath got tagged with a tough foul call that put Jeffery on the line with 1. 2 seconds left. She hit both, and USC was out of time for one last push. USC's 49-percent shooting effort from the floor outpaced Colorado's 44 percent, but the Buffs got to the line almost twice as many times as the Trojans. Colorado went 13-for-17 on free throws down the stretch to 6-of-9 by USC. USC's top scorer was Christina Marinacci with 17 points - including a run in which the junior scored USC's first 10 points of the second half to give the Trojans the largest lead of the game, up 44-36 with 16:27 to go. She was joined in double digits by Briana Gilbreath's 15 points and 13 from Cassie Harberts. At Utah, USC saw the Utes turn the corner on a cold first half start to eventually move into a late lead, shooting 54 percent in the second half and putting away late-game free throws for a final 63-55 win over the Women of Troy. USC built up a 17-0 lead until the Utes found their scoring touch to close the gap in the last 11:30 of play, leaving the Trojans with a 23-21 halftime lead. Freshman Ariya Crook had her career high of 10 points by halftime to lead the Women of Troy, and would finish on top with 17 points on the night. But it was the turnaround by Utah's Michelle Plouffe that would spell doom for the Trojans. Plouffe was scoreless in the first half, but got hot in the second and finished with a game-high 21 points. Her spark helped Utah finish out the game shooting 40 percent from the floor - after going at 28 percent in the first half. USC, meanwhile, stayed consistent but missed key shots to keep pace and finished at 38 percent from the floor. Ashley Corral dumped in three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points for USC, with Cassie Harberts adding 10.
SCOUTING UCSB
The Gauchos are 8-11 overall and hold a 3-5 mark in the Big West after losing 51-47 to UC Davis and 52-48 to Pacific last week. Nicole Nesbit leads UCSB in scoring with 9.4 points per game, and Kirsten Tilleman leads in rebounding with 8.3 rebounds per game. Carlene Mitchell is in her first season as head coach of the Gauchos, who went 19-12 overall last season. USC is 12-13 all-time against UC Santa Barbara with wins in the past two meetings. The latest came in the 2011 WNIT first round, where USC claimed a 67-64 win at the Galen Center last season.
ROAD WARRIORS
A road-tested USC roster is back for more this season. Last season, the Women of Troy played in 11 different states in amassing a program record of 18 road games. This year, USC opened the year with another busy travel schedule. The Women of Troy visited five different U.S. states during their nonconference stretch, which included face-offs against six NCAA tournament teams, including road tilts against 2011 NCAA finalist Notre Dame and champion Texas A&M. After a loss to Colorado in Pac-12 play on Thursday, USC is now 3-7 in road and neutral-site games to date. Four of USC's five nonconference losses came on the road against currently AP-ranked teams: No. 16 Nebraska, No. 21 Georgia, No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 18 Texas A&M. The only other nonconference road loss this year was at unranked Arkansas State in USC's first-ever trip to the state of Arkansas. The losses to Colorado and Utah were USC's first Pac-12 road losses.
SCHEDULE STRENGTH
Although USC was one of three Pac-12 teams to enter conference play without a winning record, the Trojans boast the toughest schedule in the conference and No. 8 toughest nationally (realtimerpi.com). Entering Pac-12 play, USC's strength of schedule was listed as No. 2 in the nation. USC has played three top-10 teams to date (0-3 against), with eight games against currently ranked or receiving votes in the national polls (3-5 against). USC's current NCAA RPI is 32 (as of Jan. 30), putting the Trojans as the second-highest team from the Pac-12.
MOVING ON UP
USC seniors Ashley Corral and Briana Gilbreath both broke the 1,000-point barrier last season and continue to trek up the ladder in USC's history books. With 15 points scored at Colorado, Gilbreath moved up to No. 11 all-time (currently holds 1,480 career points). Corral jumped to No. 14 on Jan. 21 and now holds 1,425 to sit a point shy of the No. 13 spot. Gilbreath is two blocks away from No. 4 all-time in career blocks (now holds 160) and is now two steals from matching Lisa Leslie at No. 7 all-time in steals (currently holds 225). Gilbreath took over No. 7 on the career free-throws made list on Jan. 5 (currently holds 358), and on Dec. 31, she cracked the top-10 all-time in career rebounds, now ranked No. 8 with 740 -after passing Shay Murphy on Jan. 19. Corral already is etched as USC's all-time 3-point leader (276), and has recently leapfrogged Cheryl Miller, Jamie Hagiya and Tammy Story to now stand at No. 3 in career assists (currently holds 430).
FRESHMAN FIRSTS
USC's newcomers all marked up the stat sheet in their Trojan debuts in the season opener on Nov. 11. Freshman Alexyz Vaioletama got the start at forward and finished up with seven points, eight rebounds and five assists in her first action. Freshman Ariya Crook came off the bench to provide two points and an assist along with two steals; and redshirt freshman Thaddesia Southall nabbed a rebound and an assist to go along with two blocks for the post in her first minutes as a Trojan. Her first career points came with a free throw at Georgia on Nov. 20, and she became the first of the newcomers to hit double figures with 12 vs. Gardner-Webb on Nov. 26. Crook would notch her first double-digit day with 10 vs. UTSA on Nov. 30. Vaioletama hit double digits for the first time with 12 points at Texas A&M on Dec. 18, and most recently replicated that count with 12 vs. Oregon on Jan. 19. Crook picked up her first career start on Jan. 28 at Utah and hit double figures for the second time this season with a career-high 17 points.
INJURY REPORT
USC has two players sidelined for the season to rehab from offseason surgeries. Freshman Deanna Calhoun (knee) will redshirt her first year at USC, and Kate Oliver (ankle) will sit out the season after transferring from Marist. Junior Christina Marinacci missed the first game of her USC career on Nov. 11 due to health reasons but returned to action at Nebraska on Nov. 18. Ariya Crook missed the Nov. 26 game vs. Gardner-Webb with an ankle injury. Redshirt freshman Thaddesia Southall sustained a tear to her ACL graft on Nov. 30 and will be out the rest of the season. Redshirt senior Jacki Gemelos suffered her fourth career ACL tear on Dec. 18 when she injured her left knee. Briana Gilbreath missed the first game of her career on Jan. 28 with a knee injury.
YOUNG GUNS
Compared to the 14 years of combined time at USC among guards Ashley Corral, Jacki Gemelos, Briana Gilbreath and Stefanie Gilbreath, returning starters Cassie Harberts and Christina Marinacci are relative newbies. That is, until one takes a look at the minutes they've logged during their time as Trojans. Junior forward Marinacci played in every game in her first two seasons at Troy, and was fifth on the team in scoring last year with 8.2 points to go along with the second-best mark of 6.8 rebounds per game. Sophomore forward Harberts was the only Trojan to start every single game last season, and was one of four Trojans averaging in double digits last year with her 10.2 points per game that she paired with 6.2 rebounds per game. She secured a spot on the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team and was on the Pac-10 All-Tournament Team after posting a 30-point game during the tourney. This season, Harberts is averaging 11.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Marinacci missed the first game of her career in USC's 2011-12 season opener, but has returned to provide 8.4 points and 6.7 rebounds per game to date after setting a new career high with 23 points in USC's Dec. 31 win over Cal. Most importantly, Marinacci has stepped up big after the loss of Jacki Gemelos to injury, as the junior is providing 11.4 ppg and 6.9 rpg during Pac-12 play.
FRESH FACES
Michael Cooper and his coaching staff have added a premier class of incoming talent, with a group of athletes that rank as the No. 8 class in the nation. Guard Ariya Crook and forward Alexyz Vaioletama are projected to be impact players in their first seasons as Trojans. Their fellow freshmen Deanna Calhoun and Kiki Alofaituli, meanwhile, will sit out the season along with junior transfer Kate Oliver, who comes to Troy from Australia by way of two years at Marist. Calhoun is coming back from a high school-sustained knee injury, and Alofaituli will sit out per NCAA rules.
ALL-AMERICAN GIRLS
The USC roster is loaded up with eight All-American honorees. Five returning players were McDonald's All-Americans on their way into Troy: Ashley Corral, Jacki Gemelos, Briana Gilbreath, Stefanie Gilbreath and Christina Marinacci. Also holding high school All-American accolades is WBCA honoree Cassie Harberts, now a sophomore with the Trojans. That core of six returners have two new McDonald's All-Americans also lined up for action in freshmen Ariya Crook and Alexyz Vaioletama.
TOUGH TIMES IN TEXAS
On Dec. 18 in College Station, Texas, USC gave the defending NCAA champion Texas A&M all they could handle, leading by as much as 10 against the Aggies before a late push and a clutch 3-pointer from Sydney Carter netted a 71-70 comeback win for Texas A&M to preserve a now-47-game nonconference home win streak for the Aggies. USC trailed by two when Jacki Gemelos went down with a knee injury with 3:39 to go in the first half. The Trojans wiped away tears of fear and sorrow for what looked to be Gemelos' fourth ACL injury of her career and took the floor after a "For Jacki" cheer. USC would then mount a ferocious push against the Aggies. Less than a minute after Gemelos went down, Ashley Corral nailed her second of what would become five 3-pointers in the game. Freshmen Alexyz Vaioletama and Ariya Crook, along with junior Christina Marinacci and senior Briana Gilbreath, would also drain threes while the Trojans were also tough on the defensive boards to propel during a push to a 67-57 lead with 5:07 to go. Texas A&M would regroup, however, and kept USC from scoring any further field goals the rest of the way. Three free throws fell for the Trojans, but the Aggies managed to drain a winning 3-pointer with 10 seconds to go, and USC was unable to get back ahead in the remaining moments to wind up with the 71-70 loss. Corral led USC with 16 points, with Gilbreath and Vaioletama each adding 12 and Cassie Harberts providing 10.
LAST SEASON
In head coach Michael Cooper's second season at Troy, the Women of Troy experienced a successful postseason that saw USC make a run to the WNIT title match. The 2011 Women of Troy finished the year with a 24-13 overall record after a 10-8 mark in Pac-10 play. The 24 wins was the most by a USC team since 1993-94, and USC's 18 road games in the season the Trojans set another program record. Juniors Ashley Corral and Briana Gilbreath both earned All-Pac-10 Team honors for the second straight season, with Jacki Gemelos picking up her first conference honors with All-Pac-10 Honorable Mention. Newcomer Cassie Harberts was named to the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team and also had a spot on the Pac-10 All-Tournament Team alongside Corral. Corral and Gilbreath would also garner WNIT All-Tournament Team accolades, and Gilbreath became the first Trojan since 1997 to earn an AP All-American selection with an Honorable Mention pick after standing out as USC's leader in scoring, rebounds, blocks and steals in her junior season. Corral and Gilbreath made more Trojan history in both scoring their 1,000th career points last season. Gilbreath hit the mark on Jan. 22, 2011, and Corral followed suit on Feb. 10, 2011. Corral also took over as USC's all-time leader in career 3-pointers on that same day.
