Men's Basketball | December 12, 2018

The USC Trojans (5-4) will face the Oklahoma Sooners (8-1) at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla. on Dec. 15 at 6:00 p.m. PT.  Saturday's game is the middle game in a stretch of three consecutive games away from the Galen Center.  USC has lost two consecutive games for the first time this season.  USC will play three games in seven days starting with tonight's game, after having played one game in the past 13 days.

TCU RUNS AWAY FROM TROJANS - USC fell behind 10-2 in the first three minutes and never led in a 96-61 loss to TCU in the Hoophall L.A. Classic at the Staples Center on Dec. 7.  The 35-point loss was USC's largest since losing by 38 to Penn at the Forum on Jan. 11, 2003. TCU led 30-24 with five minutes remaining in the first half, but made 6 of its last 8 shots before the break, including two 3-pointers by Jaylen Fisher in the final minute which stretched the lead to 46-26 at the break. TCU made 50 percent of its first-half shots, while USC made 27.3 percent. For the game, TCU maintained a 50 percent shooting percentage, while USC finished at 31.4 percent. USC was led by Bennie Boatwright who had 14 points and Nick Rakocevic who had 13 points and 7 rebounds.  USC was outscored 40-16 on points in the paint and outrebounded 41-33.  USC also committed a season-high 20 turnovers and was outscored 27-6 on points off turnovers.  Six Horned Frogs scored in double figures, led by 15 each from Fisher and Alex Robinson.

BREAKING DOWN OKLAHOMA - Oklahoma (8-1) is coming off an 80-48 win over Wichita State in Oklahoma City, Okla. on Dec. 8.  It also has neutral court wins over Florida, Dayton and Notre Dame. Senior guard Christian James leads Oklahoma with a 19.2 scoring average and five Sooners are averaging at least 9.4 points per game. Oklahoma defeated USC 85-83 at Staples Center last year and leads the all-time series 7-4* (1 USC win vacated due to NCAA penalty, original record 7-5). USC last beat Oklahoma 66-55 on Nov. 29, 2007, which it later vacated.

SANTA CLARA ON DECK - USC's next game will be against Santa Clara (4-6+) on Dec. 18 at the Leavey Center in Santa Clara, Calif. at 7 p.m. The Broncos will host Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 13 before taking on the Trojans.  Sophomore guard Tahj Eaddy leads Santa Clara in scoring with a 15.7 average.  USC leads the all-time series 21-8, winning the last two contests, the most recent 82-59 on Dec. 14, 2017.

RAKOCEVIC HAS BEEN A FORCE ON THE BOARDS - Junior forward Nick Rakocevic has averaged 11.2 rebounds per game this season, seventh nationally and tops in the Pac-12.  He is also tied for the team lead with an average of 15.0 points per game, to average a double-double.  He scored 9 points and had 9 rebounds vs. Texas Tech on Nov. 19, snapping a streak of five consecutive double-doubles dating back to last season (2 to end the 2017-18 season).  He became the first USC player to record three double-doubles to start a  season since Sam Clancy did it to start the 2001-02 season. His five consecutive double-doubles were the most by a USC player since Nikola Vucevic had eight-straight during the 2011 season. He scored 20 points and had 12 rebounds against Nevada on Dec. 1 and has had five double-doubles this season which are tied for 13th among all DI NCAA players.

ENFIELD EYES THE CENTURY MARK - USC head coach Andy Enfield has a 99-80 record in his six seasons at the helm of the USC program.  He has led the Trojans into the postseason each of the last three seasons, combining to win 71 games, the most in a three-year stretch in school history.  He has a 140-108 overall record in eight seasons as a head coach.

TOUGH TERRAIN - USC is in the midst of playing  Nevada (10-0), TCU (7-1) and Oklahoma (8-1) in consecutive games.  The three teams are a combined 25-2 with two of the three being ranked at some point this season.  USC has also played two of the nine remaining undefeated teams this season.

ANDERSON READY FOR ACTION - USC junior transfer guard McKay Anderson had to sit out until the first semester was over due to transfer rules and will be eligible to play his first game as a Trojan on Dec. 15 vs. Oklahoma.  Anderson began his career at Southern Utah in 2014 and averaged 2.0 points in 23 games.  He then went on a two-year church mission before playing the 2017 season at Pasadena City College where he averaged 18.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.