USC To Host Portland Friday At Galen

The USC Trojans (1-0) will host the Portland Pilots (1-0) at the Galen Center on Nov. 8 at 8 p.m. USC is 30-4 in its last 34 regular season home nonconference games. The game will air on the Pac-12 Network with J.B. Long and Don MacLean calling the action.

BREAKING DOWN PORTLAND -- The Portland Pilots opened the 2019-20 season with an 86-36 home win over Willamette on Nov. 5, snapping an 18-game losing streak dating back to last season. Portland had four players score in double figures in the win and made 10 three-point baskets. The Pilots went 7-25 last season, including 0-16 in West Coast Conference play.

USC STARTS SLOW, FINISHES FAST IN OPENER --USC led just 24-23 at halftime in its opener vs. Florida A&M on Nov. 5, but outscored the Rattlers 53-25 after break and cruised to a 77-48 win at the Galen Center. The Trojans' vaunted freshman class scored 53 of the team's 77 points, led by Onyeka Okongwu's 20. USC's next two leading scorers were also freshman, Isaiah Mobley with 17 and Max Agbonkpolo with 10. Freshman point guard Ethan Anderson had four points and tied the USC freshman first-game record with seven assists. USC led by one point at halftime as it shot 33.3 percent from the field, while making just 1 of 8 three-pointers and 1 of 9 free throws. USC bounced back from the charity stripe in the second half, making 13 of 14. USC had 12 steals, matching the most it had in a game during the 2018-19 season. USC improved to 21-4 in its last 25 home openers.

BIG O'S BIG DEBUT -- Freshman forward Onyeka Okongwu scored 20 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and matched the school record with eight blocks in his collegiate debut vs. FAMU on Nov. 5. The other three Trojans with eight blocks in a game were Avondre Jones (1995 vs. Rhode Island), Gerry Wright (1982 vs. Santa Clara) and Steve Malovic (1975 vs. Howard). Okongwu also became the first USC freshman to post a double-double in his debut since Taj Gibson in 2006.

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE ON DECK -- USC will host the South Dakota State Jackrabbits at the Galen Center on Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. SDSU (1-0) opened with a 70-57 home win over Texas Rio Grande Valley on Nov. 5. Junior forward Douglas Wilson led SDSU with 24 points in the opener and sophomore forward Matt Dentlinger had a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds. SDSU went 24-9 last season and won the Summit League.

TEAM TROJAN -- USC played all 12 available players on its roster in the opener and had 10 players with at least one rebound, 10 with at least two points and nine with at least one steal. Ten different Trojans played at least 10 minutes, with non over 28 minutes.

WINNING WAYS -- USC has won 87 games over the previous four season (2016-19), the winningest four-year stretch in school history. Included in that stretch was a school-record 26 wins during the 2017 season.

PAC-12 PRESEASON HONORS -- Senior forward Nick Rakocevic was named to the inaugural Pac-12 Preseason All-Conference team, announced at Pac-12 Media Day on Oct. 8 in San Francisco, Calif. Senior guard Jonah Mathews and freshman forward Isaiah Mobley were named honorable mention. USC was picked to finish fifth by Pac-12 media and received one of the 27 first-place votes.

RAKOCEVIC NAMED TO PRESEASON WOODEN AWARD WATCH LIST -- Nick Rakocevic was one of 50 players named to the preseason Wooden Award Watch List on Nov. 5.
The 50 student-athletes on the watch list are early front-runners for the Wooden Award All-American Team and the Most Outstanding Player Award, as voted upon in a preseason poll of national college basketball experts.

Players Mentioned

Max Agbonkpolo

Ethan Anderson

Jonah Mathews

Isaiah Mobley

Onyeka Okongwu

Nick Rakocevic