University Southern California Trojans
USC Closes Homestand Hosting Utah Sunday
February 19, 2016 | Men's Basketball
The USC Trojans (19-7, 8-5) will host the Utah Runnin' Utes (20-7, 9-5) at the Galen Center on Feb. 21 at 3 p.m. The game will air on the Pac-12 Network, Pac-12 Los Angeles and Pac-12 Mountain with Spero Dedes and Steve Lavin calling the action. USC's 19-7 start is its best since also going 19-7 to start the 2006-07 season. That team lost its next game to go 19-8. The last time USC started 20-7 or better was the 1992 season when the Trojans were 22-5 after 27 games. The 19 wins by USC are the most since the 2011 season (19-15). The last time USC won 20 games in a season was in 2009 (22-13). For tickets to any upcoming USC men's basketball game, please visit gettrojantix.com.
BREAKING DOWN THE UTES - Utah is coming off a 75-73 win at UCLA on Feb. 18. The Running' Utes have won eight of their last 10 Pac-12 games, including their last three. USC trails in the all-time series with Utah 17-19 and has lost the last five meetings. USC last faced Utah at home on Feb. 1, 2015 and lost 67-39. Utah is led in scoring and rebounding by sophomore 7-0 forward Jakob Poeltl (17.7 ppg/8.9 rpg).
USC STORMS BACK TO DEFEAT COLORADO -- Jordan McLaughlin scored a career-high 25 points, hitting a go-ahead three-pointer with 2:53 remaining, and USC rallied from 15 points down in the second half to beat Colorado 79-72 on Feb. 17. USC trailed 60-45 with 8:59 remaining, then closed the game on a 34-12 run, including 11 by McLaughlin. USC defeated Colorado for the first time since it joined the conference (1-7). Colorado made one field goal in the final 8:15. USC switched to a zone which produced a 20-5 run that tied the game 65-all, setting up McLaughlin's three-pointer. Julian Jacobs added 17 points and five steals. USC made 60.9 percent of its shots in the second half, after making 37.0 percent in the first half. USC forced 20 turnovers and collected 13 steals, its most since also getting 13 vs. UCLA on Feb. 4, 2009. USC trailed at home at halftime for the first time this season and improved to 1-4 overall when trailing at the half, and won for the first time when behind with five minutes left in the game (1-6).
TRIP TO STANFORD ON DECK -- USC's next game will be at the Stanford Cardinal (13-11, 6-7) on Feb. 25 in Palo Alto, Calif. Stanford will also play at Washington on Feb. 20 before hosting the Trojans. USC trails in the all-time series with the Cardinal 124-122, which reflects one Trojan victory in the 2008 season vacated due to NCAA penalty. USC has lost four consecutive games versus Stanford and is 2-11 in the last 13 games at Maples Pavilion. Senior forward Rosco Allen leads Stanford in scoring with a 15.4 ppg average.
SC STANDS FOR SLAM CITY - USC has registered 97 dunks in the first 26 games, compared to its opponents' 48. Chimezie Metu leads USC with 38 dunks and Julian Jacobs, who led USC in dunks last season with 19, is second on the team with 29.
TURNAROUND TOWN -- According to research by J.D. Hamilton of the NCAA, USC's 10.0 game improvement from last season (12-20 to 19-7) is tied for 8th best in the country and tops among teams in the Power 5 conferences.
IT TAKES A TEAM -- USC has six players averaging 10.6 or more points and eight players have averaged 3.1 rebounds or more in the first 26 games. Seven different Trojans have scored at least 19 points in a game this season. USC has four players with at least 45 three-point baskets this season. Last season, USC had only three players all season make 16 or more three-pointers. USC had five players score in double figures vs. Monmouth on Nov. 16, the first time it had accomplished the feat since 2013 and has had five or more reach double figures in nine games this season. USC had six players score 10 or more points vs. Cal Poly on Dec. 17, the first time accomplishing that feat since Dec. 28, 2004 vs. Southern.
STRONG FIRST STEP - USC began the week with six regular season games remaining, four at home and two on the road. The combined record of the six teams entering the week USC will play was 102-48 (68.0 winning percentage). USC started the stretch with a 79-72 home win over Colorado on Feb. 17. Three of the four home games are against teams with 19 or more wins (Colorado, Utah and Oregon) and one of the two road games is at California, which is 16-0 at home this season.
JOVANOVIC POSTS RARE DOUBLE-DOUBLE -- Nikola Jovanovic scored 25 points and grabbed 15 rebounds at Arizona State on Feb. 12 for his seventh double-double this season and 13th of his career. He became the first Trojan player with 25 or more points and 15 or more rebounds in a game since Lorenzo Orr scored 26 points and grabbed 15 rebounds also at Arizona State on Jan. 19, 1995. In his last five games, Jovanovic has averaged 15.8 points (79 total) and 7.0 rebounds (35 total). Jovanovic is 26 points away from becoming a 1,000-point scorer.
HOT START AT HOME -- USC is currently 15-0 at home this season, its most consecutive home wins to start a season in program history. USC won its last home game of the 2014-15 season so it has won 16 straight games at home, the second-longest home winning streak in school history. USC's longest home winning streak was 20 games from 1939-41 (6 at the end of the 1939 season, all 10 games during the 1940 season and the first 4 of the 1941 season).
DYNAMIC DUO -- Jordan McLaughlin (131) and Julian Jacobs (129) are one of two sets of guards in the country with at least 125 assists this season. The other pair is Emmett Naar (153) and Joe Rahon (155) of Saint Mary's.
THREE AT LAST, THREE AT LAST... - USC has made 209 three-point baskets this season, second among Pac-12 teams through games of Feb. 18. It is the most by USC since netting 233 in the 2005 season. USC has finished 11th or 12th among Pac-12 teams in three-pointers made the last four seasons. USC has made six or more three-pointers in 21 of the 26 games and six times has netted 12 or more, with a season-best 13 makes vs. CSUN on Nov. 23 and vs. Lafayette on Dec. 23. On the year, USC is averaging 38.3 percent from beyond the arc (31st in the country), while its opponents are shooting 30.8 percent from long-range (27th best in the country). Last season USC made a total of 170 three-pointers for an average of 5.3 makes per game.
EN GUARDE! -- USC's four primary guards Julian Jacobs, Jordan McLaughlin, Katin Reinhardt and Elijah Stewart have combined to average 46.7 points (1214 total), 15.2 rebounds (394 total) and 12.7 assists (330 total) per game. Despite going 29-for-72 (40.3 percent) on the trip to Oregon, they are shooting 45.6 percent (428-for-939) from the floor, 39.3 percent from three-point range (149-for-379).
J-MAC ON THE ATTACK - Sophomore guard Jordan McLaughlin, a Pac-12 All-Freshman selection a year ago despite missing the final eight games due to injury, has come back from labral repair surgery to both shoulders to average 13.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists in his first 26 games. He also has 42 steals and a 45 three-point baskets. He scored a career-high 25 points in the victory vs. Colorado on Feb. 17. McLaughlin broke his nose late in the first half against Xavier on Nov. 27, sat out the rest of that game and played wearing a mask since Nov. 29 vs. Monmouth until playing "unmasked" vs. SIUE on Dec. 21. Excluding the game vs. Xavier when he broke his nose and didn't play in the second half, in the 20 games he has played this season without wearing a mask he has averaged 15.2 points (304 total) and in the five games with a mask on, 7.2 points. He scored 6 points in the first half against Xavier.
TROJANS HOSTING SEASON-LONG BLOCK PARTY - USC has registered 151 blocks in the first 26 games, tied for 10th among all Division I schools in total blocks through games of Feb. 18. USC's average of 5.8 blocks per game ranks tied for seventh among all NCAA DI teams. USC had a total of 133 blocks in 32 games last season for a 4.2 blocks per game average. USC's 151 blocks are also tied for third on USC's all-time list: 165 in 2009, 162 in 2013 and 151 in 2001.
POWERPOINT PRESENTATION - USC has scored 22156 points in the first 26 games of the season, its most to start a season since scoring 2240 in the 26 games of the 1975 season. USC has scored 90 or more points eight times, including 100 or more points four times. USC had not reached the century mark in scoring in a game since the 2002 season. USC's four games with 100 or more points ties the 1975 team for the most 100-point games in a single-season by a Trojan team. USC's 83.1 points per game average ranks 17th in the country through games of Feb. 15. USC averaged 67.0 points last season. USC has scored 80 or more points in 8 of the first 12 Pac-12 games. The last time USC scored 80 or more points 8 times in Pac-12 play was in 2007. The last time USC scored 80-plus points more times in conference play was 2002 (10).
IT STARTS WITH DEFENSE - USC held UCLA to 34.8 percent shooting on Feb. 4. It was the 10th time in 26 games this season that USC's opponent shot under 40 percent in a game. For the season, USC is making 46.2 percent of its shots, while its opponents are hitting 40.3 percent. The 40.3 shooting percentage by its opponents ranks 47th-best in the country through games of Feb. 18. Arizona became the first team to shoot 50 percent or better vs. USC on Feb. 14 (50.0) and also have the second-best percentage by a Trojan opponent of 49.4 percent on Jan. 9. USC has held 16 of 26 opponents to 42.6 percent shooting or less this season.
