University Southern California Trojans
Saturday, March 3
Los Angeles, CA
7:15 PM
USC
vs
UCLA
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard/Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: John McGillen
USC To Host UCLA Saturday In Regular Season Finale
February 27, 2018 | Men's Basketball, Features
The USC Trojans (21-9, 12-5) will host the UCLA Bruins (19-10, 10-7) at the Galen Center at 7:15 p.m., the final regular season game. USC is in second place in the Pac-12 and its 12-5 start to conference play is its best since also beginning 12-5 in 1997. That team finished 12-6 (as did the 2002 team) and the last time USC won more than 12 conference games was the 1992 season when it went 15-3 in conference play. USC has won 10 of its last 13 games. It will be Senior Night with Jordan McLaughlin, Elijah Stewart and Kurt Karis being saluted before the game.
SUCCESSFUL STRETCH -- USC has won 20 or more games for the third consecutive season, just the second time in school history (2007-09). The 2008 team was 21-12, but had 21 wins and one loss vacated due to NCAA penalty, so technically this is the first time in school history with three consecutive 20-win seasons. The 68 wins over the past three seasons would then be the most in a three-season stretch for the Trojans (68 total from 2007-09 before 21 wins vacated). Â
BREAKING DOWN UCLA -- UCLA is coming off an 80-76 loss at Colorado on Feb. 25.   UCLA defeated USC 82-79 at Pauley Pavilion on Feb. 3. UCLA leads the all-time series 141-108, which reflects a win by USC vacated due to NCAA penalty. UCLA has four players averging double figures in points, led by Aaron Holiday (19.6). USC is 4-3 in its last seven games against UCLA, including winning the last two games at the Galen Center.
USC COMPLETES MOUNTAIN ROAD SWEEP -- USC defeated Utah 74-58 in Salt Lake City, Utah on Feb. 24 to complete its first Mountain road trip sweep since Utah and Colorado joined the Pac-12. It was also just the fifth time any conference team had swept the two teams at home since they joined in the Pac-12 for the 2011-12 season. USC led most of the game and took a 38-28 lead into halftime. Utah cut the lead to six at 55-49 with 8:52 remaining. Andy Enfield called a timeout and the Trojans responded with a 9-0 run, beginning with back-to-back dunks by Elijah Stewart on lobs from Jordan McLaughlin. USC built the lead to as many as 23, but Utah scored the final seven points of the game. USC was led in scoring by Chimezie Metu with 14 points and 9 rebounds and Jordan Usher with 14 points on 4 of 5 shooting from three-point range.  USC made 50.9 percent of its shots and held Utah to 40.7 percent shooting. USC registered 12 steals for the second time this season and forced Utah into 15 turnovers. The win snapped Utah's 5-game winning streak. Â
DOING ROAD WORK -- USC finished 5-4 in Pac-12 road games, its best mark since also going 5-4 in 2008. Four of the conference road wins were against teams which were a combined 51-9 in home games this season against everyone else on their schedule.
PAC-12 TOURNAMENT ON DECK - USC's next game will be at the Pac-12 Tournament on March 8 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. Opponent and time to be determined.
McLAUGHLIN A COUSY AWARD FINALIST -- Jordan McLaughlin is one of 10 players remaining on the watch list for the Bob Cousy Award as the nation's top point guard. McLaughlin, a three-year team captain, is averaging 12.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists this season. McLaughlin leads all Pac-12 players this season in assists with 228, which is third nationally. Last season he was the only player in the country with at least three assists in every game and he has accomplished that in all 30 games this season as well, running his nation's longest streak to 67 consecutive games with at least three assists (dating back to the 2015-16 season).
GOOD BALANCE -- USC is the only team in conference play to rank in the top 5 in scoring offense (5th, 76.0) and scoring defense (1st, 69.2). Its +6.8 scoring margin is tops in Pac-12 play.
PROTECTING THE ROCK -- USC ranks 12th in the country with a 1.51 assist to turnover ratio through games of Feb. 26. USC also ranks 15th in fewest turnovers per game at 10.7 per game. USC leads all Pac-12 teams in both categories.
NICK THE QUICK -- USC forward Nick Rakocevic has provided steady production all season first coming off the bench and now as a starter.  He leads USC with 75 offensive rebounds and ranks seventh in the conference with 2.5 offensive rebounds per game. He has scored 66 points and grabbed 46 rebounds in the last seven games for an average of 9.4 points and 6.6. Rakocevic has made a team-leading 62.2 percent of his shots this season and in Pac-12 games, he is second among all players with a 62.7 shooting percentage. He scored 36 points and had 14 rebounds on the trip to the Bay Area from Jan. 4-7. He also made 69.6 percent of his shots (16-for-23) and grabbed 10 offensive rebounds in the two games. Â
McGLAUGHLIN RISING UP THE CHARTS -- Senior point guard Jordan McLaughlin continues to lead the Trojans and move up some of USC's all-time lists. McLaughlin is averaging 12.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists this season. He leads all Pac-12 players in assists per game and is tied for second in steals per game (1.9). He also ranks fourth nationally in assists per game (7.6) and is third in total assists (228), behind Emmett Naar of St. Mary's (252) and Trea Young of Oklahoma (256). McLaughlin ranks second on USC's all-time list and is fourth among current players with 685 career assists. He also ranks 5th in steals (197), T-6th in three-pointers (176), 5th in scoring (1,556) and 2nd in minutes played on USC's all-time lists (9 behind USC's all-time leader in minutes played Dwight Lewis - 4,069).
DEFENSIVE CHARGE -- Since allowing Washington to shoot 67.3 percent in a loss on Dec. 29, the highest shooting percentage by a Trojan opponent since 2003, USC has combined to hold its last 16 opponents to a 43.2 shooting percentage (362-for-838), despite allowing Arizona to make 56.1 percent of its shots on Feb. 10. USC has held the opposition to an average of 68.1 points in that span (1089 total). In the 16 games, USC has registered 118 steals (7.4 spg) and forced 231 turnovers (14.4 topg). USC is 8-0 this season when holding the opposition to under 40 percent shooting and 11-1 when forcing the opposition into 15 or more turnovers.
STEWART IS A GAMER -- USC senior Elijah Stewart has played 132 career games as a Trojan, second on USC's all-time list. Dwight Lewis played in the most games as a Trojan with 133. Stewart surpassed the 1,000 points scored mark during the win at Vanderbilt on Nov. 19 and now has 1,324 career points scored, 16th on USC's all-time list. Stewart has made 59 three-pointers this season to give him a school-record 234 in his career. Stewart has also played 132 consecutive games, the most of any player in the Pac-12. Stewart matched a career high with seven there-point makes vs. Oklahoma on Dec. 8.
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SUCCESSFUL STRETCH -- USC has won 20 or more games for the third consecutive season, just the second time in school history (2007-09). The 2008 team was 21-12, but had 21 wins and one loss vacated due to NCAA penalty, so technically this is the first time in school history with three consecutive 20-win seasons. The 68 wins over the past three seasons would then be the most in a three-season stretch for the Trojans (68 total from 2007-09 before 21 wins vacated). Â
BREAKING DOWN UCLA -- UCLA is coming off an 80-76 loss at Colorado on Feb. 25.   UCLA defeated USC 82-79 at Pauley Pavilion on Feb. 3. UCLA leads the all-time series 141-108, which reflects a win by USC vacated due to NCAA penalty. UCLA has four players averging double figures in points, led by Aaron Holiday (19.6). USC is 4-3 in its last seven games against UCLA, including winning the last two games at the Galen Center.
USC COMPLETES MOUNTAIN ROAD SWEEP -- USC defeated Utah 74-58 in Salt Lake City, Utah on Feb. 24 to complete its first Mountain road trip sweep since Utah and Colorado joined the Pac-12. It was also just the fifth time any conference team had swept the two teams at home since they joined in the Pac-12 for the 2011-12 season. USC led most of the game and took a 38-28 lead into halftime. Utah cut the lead to six at 55-49 with 8:52 remaining. Andy Enfield called a timeout and the Trojans responded with a 9-0 run, beginning with back-to-back dunks by Elijah Stewart on lobs from Jordan McLaughlin. USC built the lead to as many as 23, but Utah scored the final seven points of the game. USC was led in scoring by Chimezie Metu with 14 points and 9 rebounds and Jordan Usher with 14 points on 4 of 5 shooting from three-point range.  USC made 50.9 percent of its shots and held Utah to 40.7 percent shooting. USC registered 12 steals for the second time this season and forced Utah into 15 turnovers. The win snapped Utah's 5-game winning streak. Â
DOING ROAD WORK -- USC finished 5-4 in Pac-12 road games, its best mark since also going 5-4 in 2008. Four of the conference road wins were against teams which were a combined 51-9 in home games this season against everyone else on their schedule.
PAC-12 TOURNAMENT ON DECK - USC's next game will be at the Pac-12 Tournament on March 8 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. Opponent and time to be determined.
McLAUGHLIN A COUSY AWARD FINALIST -- Jordan McLaughlin is one of 10 players remaining on the watch list for the Bob Cousy Award as the nation's top point guard. McLaughlin, a three-year team captain, is averaging 12.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists this season. McLaughlin leads all Pac-12 players this season in assists with 228, which is third nationally. Last season he was the only player in the country with at least three assists in every game and he has accomplished that in all 30 games this season as well, running his nation's longest streak to 67 consecutive games with at least three assists (dating back to the 2015-16 season).
GOOD BALANCE -- USC is the only team in conference play to rank in the top 5 in scoring offense (5th, 76.0) and scoring defense (1st, 69.2). Its +6.8 scoring margin is tops in Pac-12 play.
PROTECTING THE ROCK -- USC ranks 12th in the country with a 1.51 assist to turnover ratio through games of Feb. 26. USC also ranks 15th in fewest turnovers per game at 10.7 per game. USC leads all Pac-12 teams in both categories.
NICK THE QUICK -- USC forward Nick Rakocevic has provided steady production all season first coming off the bench and now as a starter.  He leads USC with 75 offensive rebounds and ranks seventh in the conference with 2.5 offensive rebounds per game. He has scored 66 points and grabbed 46 rebounds in the last seven games for an average of 9.4 points and 6.6. Rakocevic has made a team-leading 62.2 percent of his shots this season and in Pac-12 games, he is second among all players with a 62.7 shooting percentage. He scored 36 points and had 14 rebounds on the trip to the Bay Area from Jan. 4-7. He also made 69.6 percent of his shots (16-for-23) and grabbed 10 offensive rebounds in the two games. Â
McGLAUGHLIN RISING UP THE CHARTS -- Senior point guard Jordan McLaughlin continues to lead the Trojans and move up some of USC's all-time lists. McLaughlin is averaging 12.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists this season. He leads all Pac-12 players in assists per game and is tied for second in steals per game (1.9). He also ranks fourth nationally in assists per game (7.6) and is third in total assists (228), behind Emmett Naar of St. Mary's (252) and Trea Young of Oklahoma (256). McLaughlin ranks second on USC's all-time list and is fourth among current players with 685 career assists. He also ranks 5th in steals (197), T-6th in three-pointers (176), 5th in scoring (1,556) and 2nd in minutes played on USC's all-time lists (9 behind USC's all-time leader in minutes played Dwight Lewis - 4,069).
DEFENSIVE CHARGE -- Since allowing Washington to shoot 67.3 percent in a loss on Dec. 29, the highest shooting percentage by a Trojan opponent since 2003, USC has combined to hold its last 16 opponents to a 43.2 shooting percentage (362-for-838), despite allowing Arizona to make 56.1 percent of its shots on Feb. 10. USC has held the opposition to an average of 68.1 points in that span (1089 total). In the 16 games, USC has registered 118 steals (7.4 spg) and forced 231 turnovers (14.4 topg). USC is 8-0 this season when holding the opposition to under 40 percent shooting and 11-1 when forcing the opposition into 15 or more turnovers.
STEWART IS A GAMER -- USC senior Elijah Stewart has played 132 career games as a Trojan, second on USC's all-time list. Dwight Lewis played in the most games as a Trojan with 133. Stewart surpassed the 1,000 points scored mark during the win at Vanderbilt on Nov. 19 and now has 1,324 career points scored, 16th on USC's all-time list. Stewart has made 59 three-pointers this season to give him a school-record 234 in his career. Stewart has also played 132 consecutive games, the most of any player in the Pac-12. Stewart matched a career high with seven there-point makes vs. Oklahoma on Dec. 8.
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