USC welcomes Oregon in clash of frustrated rivals
Former Pac-12 Conference rivals Southern California and Oregon meet on Saturday in Los Angeles, each looking to pull out of slumps in Big Ten Conference play.
USC (18-8, 7-8 Big Ten) has seen its NCAA Tournament aspirations take hits in recent outings. The Trojans come into Saturday's contest on a two-game losing skid after Wednesday's 101-65 home debacle against No. 10 Illinois.
USC played without season-long leading scorer Chad Baker-Mazara, who USC coach Eric Musselman said was "day-to-day" with a minor knee strain. Baker-Mazara dealt with a neck injury in January, which contributed to his scoring output sliding from more than 20 points per game to 18.3.
Injuries have plagued the Trojans since before the season, including the summertime loss of blue-chip prospect Alijah Arenas for the first two months of the campaign due to a knee injury.
Arenas debuted on Jan. 21 and averaged 26.0 points over a recent three-game span. He struggled against Illinois, however, shooting 2-of-7 from the floor en route to eight points with three turnovers.
"We haven't played good basketball at home, and we've got to figure out how (to win home games)," Musselman said.
Leaving home has vexed Oregon (9-17, 2-13), which comes into Los Angeles with a 1-10 record in road and neutral-site games.
A 61-44 loss at home to Minnesota on Tuesday added to Oregon's woes. The Ducks are on track to miss the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the last five years.
As things stand with five games left in the regular season, the Ducks would have to play an extra contest in the Big Ten tournament. The league's bottom four teams meet in a play-in to pare down the bracket to 16.
"We've got to bounce back and have a lot more energy," said Oregon coach Dana Altman, who has not posted a losing record since 1995-96 when he was at Creighton. "We're going to have to play a whole lot harder against USC."
The Trojans beat the Ducks 82-77 on Dec. 2 in Eugene, Ore., behind 25 points from Baker-Mazara. Kwame Evans Jr. had 23 points and nine rebounds in the loss, but the Ducks big man comes into Saturday having scored no more than six points in three of the last four outings.