USC Men's Basketball Finishes Road Trip at Iowa

Wednesday, January 28

Iowa City, Iowa

4 p.m.

USC

Iowa

Jacob Cofie takes a shot on the road at Wisconsin

USC Men's Basketball Finishes Road Trip at Iowa

January 27, 2026 | Men's Basketball

Game Notes (PDF)

The Trojans secured a 99-89 win over the Hawkeyes last season.

LOS ANGELES — USC Men's Basketball (15-5, 4-5 Big Ten) will take on the Iowa Hawkeyes (14-5, 4-4 Big Ten) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 28. USC trails the all-time series, winning the last matchup 99-89 on Jan. 14, 2025.

WHEREABOUTS
Game #21 vs. Iowa
Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 4 p.m. PT
Carver-Hawkeye Arena | Iowa City, Iowa
TV: Big Ten Network

LAST TIME OUT
The Trojans took down the Wisconsin Badgers, ending their five-game win streak against Big Ten opponents. USC pulled away with an early double-digit lead through a dynamic offense, until the Badgers got right back into it with second chances off the glass. While Wisconsin led 58-46 with 12 minutes to play, the Trojans broke out on a 13-2 scoring run that lasted four minutes. It came down to a clutch defensive possession by Jerry Easter II for USC to take the win over Wisconsin, 73-71.

Chad Baker-Mazara's 29 points propelled USC to victory. He splashed five triples and recorded three assists. Jacob Cofie went for his third consecutive game with 10 or more rebounds, while Ezra Ausar poured in crucial six points within the last five minutes of the game. USC also held Wisconsin to its lowest field goal percentage of the season, only allowing the Badgers to shoot at 34.3% from the field. It was also the fifth opponent this season that the Trojans did not allow to shoot better than 25% from three.

SCOUTING THE HAWKEYES

The Iowa Hawkeyes enter Wednesday's game ninth in the Big Ten. They last beat Rutgers 68-62, erasing a halftime deficit and forcing 19 turnovers en route to victory.
In that game, Bennett Stirtz scored a game-high 20 points and five assists.
Stirtz, Iowa's top scorer, was selected to the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List. He's had nine games with 20 or more points.
With 10.6 points per game, Tavion Banks joins Stirtz in double-digit scoring. He lands a .550-clip from beyond the arc.
The Hawkeyes top the conference in steals per game (7.6). They rank last in the Big Ten on the boards, grabbing just 30.6 rebounds per game.
The team shoots 37.6% from beyond the arc, ranking second in the Big Ten.
Iowa has held every opponent below its season scoring average in 2025-26.
Only two players return from last year's squad. The Hawkeyes welcomed 12 newcomers, including six freshmen.
Head Coach Ben McCollum is in his first season in Iowa City. Previously, he led Northwest Missouri State University (NCAA DII) to four national championships. Before this season, McCollum owned a 425-95 overall record (.818).

CHAD'S CORNER
Chad Baker-Mazara has always dreamed of playing for USC since he visited his aunt on campus when he was in high school. Now, that dream is coming true, and it might be his best year yet. Baker-Mazara is currently averaging 19.2 points per game, which ranks sixth in the Big Ten. Along with that, he has a usage percentage of 29.2% and has an assist percentage of 21.5%, which is in the 98th percentile according to CBB Analytics.

He broke his career-high in points twice this season, most recently doing that with 34 points in triple overtime against Troy. He added another 31 points and three blocks against San Diego, being the only USC player to hit 30+ points and 3+ blocks in two games. Additionally, Baker-Mazara is one of 33 players in the nation to have multiple 30+ point games and nine games with 20 or more points.

UNDER PRESSURE
USC is 5-0 in one-possession games and 2-0 in overtime games. The Trojans are one of three Big Ten teams with a perfect record in one-possession and overtime games; the others are Nebraska (4-0) and Rutgers (3-0).