Usc Basketball

Usc Men’s Basketball Remains Calm On Right Side Of Bubble

... remain aware of what is at stake. “The next two games are must wins,” Boatwright said. Asked if they felt pressure building, junior guard Elijah Stewart did not think so. “We’ve all been playing basketball for a while,” Stewart said. “We know the ins-and-outs, the politics behind everything. We know, if you have a certain amount of wins, you don’t have to be concerned about the bubble. If we can go in and make strong strides in the Pac-12 Tournament, we should be fine for Selection Sunday.”. USC, at 21-8 overall and 8-8 in the Pac-12, remains on track to land on the right side of the tournament bubble, so long as it starts winning again. Right now, nearly all of the bracket projections still include the Trojans in the field of 68. CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm seeded them No. 9. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi left them as a No. 11 seed. Of the 123 mock brackets compiled by the website Bracket Matrix, only four did not have them making the ...

De’anthony Melton’s Versatility Didn’t Go Unnoticed By Usc Basketball

... player efficiency rating (19.6) stands third as well after forward Bennie Boatwright (23.2) and Metu (21.2). Much of this has come by surprise. Melton for the most part, passed through high school as an unheralded recruit, particularly in comparison to the other star freshmen to leave an impact throughout the Pac-12. Not until the end of his junior season did Melton receive his first scholarship offer. It was from USC, and it remained the only one from a so-called Power 5 Conference program. The 64 other teams from the ACC, Big 12 Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC passed. It remains a slight. “It’s definitely a chip on my shoulder,” Melton said. Recruiting Melton. The commute was short for Jason Hart. The USC assistant coach lives in the San Fernando Valley, and so trekking to Crespi High in Encino to watch Melton play on weeknights was easy. It was right in his neighborhood. Hart noticed something early on about Melton, ...

Usc Men’s Basketball Beats Washington For 23rd Win Of Season

... 10-8 in the Pac-12 and tied for fifth. Last year, they went 9-9 and were tied for sixth. In the final week before Selection Sunday, the Trojans can further their case in the Pac-12 Tournament, which begins Wednesday in Las Vegas when they face No. 11-seeded Washington in a rematch in the first round. The winner will face third-seeded UCLA in the quarterfinals the following day. As USC toppled the Huskies on Saturday afternoon at the Galen Center, it was steadied by Mc Laughlin. The veteran point guard scored 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting, dished out nine assists and collected four rebounds. “That’s what he wants to do, is relied upon to do and is expected to do for us,” Enfield said. “He’s our leader.”. It was another strong performance from Mc Laughlin, who was one rebound shy of a triple-double against Washington State. In the final homestand, he averaged 19 points, 6.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists. “It’s March,” Mc Laughlin said. “You gotta play your best basketball. It’s about that time. March Madness. It’s ...

Notice Continues To Dominate On Defense

... on the 3-pointer (and over a 40 percent clip of making them) all comes back to, “We can’t stop you, so we’ll score more than you.”. USC was putting itself in bad position by taking too many 3-pointers that were turning into those Marquette shots. Then their switches on defense were getting lost, leaving wide-open looks for the Eagles to drain 3 s. Notice stopped it. Following a timeout, the Gamecocks tightened their on-the-ball defense, Notice running point on it. Now every ball-handler suddenly had a hand, shoulder or Notice’s beard in his face when he was looking to get rid of the ball. USC climbed back into the game and then floored it in the second half. “Everybody talks about our defense, and talk about me stunting the ball and stuff like that, but Duane doesn’t get enough credit for what he does,” Thornwell said. “How he heats point guards up, how he routed them.”. Thornwell said Notice should have made the All-SEC Defensive team – he wasn’t alone there – but shot-blocking, steals and rebounding leaders ...

Ucla, Usc Basketball Teams Slipping Academically

... the tournament. USC's rate was 959, matching Texas Southern, one point behind St. Mary's and Minnesota. The Trojans rate in 2015 was also 959. USC's rate was impacted by player defections after the coaching change that resulted in the hiring of Andy Enfield prior to the 2013-14 season, USC Sports Information Director Tim Tessalone told City News Service. The average in the field was 971.78. USC's APR will significantly increase in the coming years as the single-year APR for the 2011-12 year is removed from the average, Tessalone said. The Trojans had a perfect 1,000 APR for the 2014-15 year. The team posted its highest semester cumulative grade point average in the 2016 fall semester, Tessalone said. Records have been kept since 2000. Seven teams had perfect scores of 1,000 - Bucknell, Florida, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan State, Seton Hall and West Virginia. Duke, Gonzaga, Michigan, and Virginia Commonwealth were next at 995, followed by defending champion Villanova at 994. New Orleans had the lowest score, 888, followed in the bottom 10 by Eastern Tennessee State (933), Southern Methodist (939), Iona (943), Oregon (945), Rhode Island and North Dakota (both 947), Mount St. ...

Usc Isn't Happy With Its No. 1 Ranking In An Unusual Category. Where's The Luck

... said. “The better team usually wins a one-possession game, but the chances of the better team winning are like 55, 60%.”. Which is to say, a team that emerges with lots of close wins has been. lucky. The conclusion is backed up by thousands of games of evidence. The theory also chafes many coaches and players whose seasons and careers are often made on this razor’s edge. Coaches devote hours of practice to end-of-game situations. In their view, the point of the game is to win, and to do so a team has to make more plays, and to make more plays a team has to be good. USC, which had close wins over Texas A&M, Southern Methodist and Colorado, among others, thinks it has been good. Pomeroy’s formulas haven’t been as charitable. Pomeroy’s main contribution to basketball is his overall ratings, a predictive tool designed to measure how good a team is — as opposed ...

Usc Guard Elijah Stewart's Game-winning Shot Reignites College Basketball's Oddest Feud

... government.”. Ken Pom. “Ken Pom.”. Some back story: “Ken Pom” is Ken Pomeroy, the influential basketball statistician whose publicly available metrics last month listed USC as the luckiest team in college basketball. Stewart took offense, and his umbrage was noted in a Times article. “Unless Jesus runs that site, it’s not very credible to me,” Stewart said at the time. “If you’re so good at telling the future, work for the government.”. “Well, Elijah Stewart, I did work for the government,” Pomeroy responded on Twitter. A grudge was born. Well, at least for Stewart. It gnawed at him enough that, weeks later, he asked what exactly Pomeroy’s government work entailed. He was convinced Pomeroy worked as a mail carrier. Hence “Post Man.” Get it. Pomeroy, who earned a civil engineering degree from Virginia Tech and a graduate degree in atmospheric science from Wyoming, was a meteorologist. His work as a ...

Usc Advances With Comeback Win Over Providence

... UD Arena on March 15, 2017 in Dayton, Ohio. (Credit: Getty Images / Joe Robbins). Head coach Ed Cooley of the Providence Friars reacts in the second half against the USC Trojans during the First Four game in the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 15, 2017 in Dayton, Ohio. (Credit: Getty Images / Gregory Shamus). Rodney Bullock #5 of the Providence Friars dunks the ball in the first half against the USC Trojans during the First Four game in the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 15, 2017 in Dayton, Ohio. ADVERTISE HERE. (Credit: Getty Images / Gregory Shamus). Kalif Young #13 of the Providence Friars reacts in the first half against the USC Trojans during the First Four game in the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 15, 2017 in Dayton, Ohio. (Credit: Getty Images / Joe Robbins). Jonah Mathews #2 of the USC Trojans defends Kyron Cartwright #24 of the Providence Friars in the second half during the First Four game in the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at ...

Baylor Men Beat Usc, 82-78, Advance To Sweet 16

... played for two NIT championships at New York’s Madison Square Garden, finishing as the runner-up in 2009 and winning the championship in 2013. But this time Baylor (27-7) will play at the famous arena in the NCAA tournament East semifinals against seventh-seeded South Carolina on Friday. With two more wins, the Bears will reach the Final Four. “It means a lot to play there, just for the history of that place,” said Baylor forward Johnathan Motley who finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds. “To win there would mean the world to me. I’m thankful for the opportunity and I want to take advantage of it.”. After losing in the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2015 and 2016 , the Bears will make their first Sweet 16 appearance since 2014. It will mark the fourth Sweet 16 appearance for coach Scott Drew who led the Bears to Elite Eight appearances in 2010 and 2012. “I used to watch the NCAA tournament on TV and had never played a game there before this year, so it’s a blessing,” said Lecomte, who played two seasons at Miami before redshirting at Baylor last year. “You dream about that.”. The ...

Ucla And Usc Are Bringing 'showtime' Back To La College Basketball

... took some criticism for the quote (that first USC team finished 11-21, while the Bruins went to the Sweet 16), but the reasoning behind it was sound. Enfield wanted the rivalry to be as competitive as it used to be, and after four years, it finally is. The fourth-year coach has been a force on the recruiting trail, bringing in four-star prospects like Boatwright, Jordan Mc Laughlin , Elijah Stewart , and Chimezie Metu. He has also made the school an attractive place for high-profile transfers, welcoming in former Duke point guard Derryck Thornton Jr. and Louisville small forward Shaqquan Aaron. The epitome of a players’ coach, Enfield has been quick to accept criticism and deflect praise throughout the season. That was true after the Trojans’ collapse in Tempe. “We aren’t going to put the blame on anybody except me,” said Enfield. “It’s a collective effort and we’re in this together. We've had a great season with some tough losses as of late, so now we have to bounce back.”. The Trojans got back to their winning ways last week by thumping Washington ...

Ucla's Lonzo Ball Won't Face Ncaa Sanctions After Usc Reports Potential Violation

... violation. Lonzo Ball's image was used on his family's website without permission from UCLA. Mar 13, 2017. • 1 min read. Lonzo Ball’s image has been taken down from his family’s apparel website after a report of concern from UCLA’s rival, USC , regarding the use of a student-athletes’ likeness for profit. According to USA Today, Big Baller Brand, a company started by La Var Ball prior to Lonzo’s arrival at UCLA , was asked to take down a photo of the Bruins star from its website. The call reportedly came from USC’s sports information director, though UCLA indicated that at the time of the report they were “aware” of the potential violation and “working on it.”. Good news for the Bruins: despite the mix-up and potential misstep in marketing, Ball won’t face any NCAA-related sanctions. The NCAA and UCLA released a joint statement to USA Today, confirming that “appropriate measures” were taken when the issue was reported and Ball’s eligibility for the NCAA Tournament is not at risk. “NCAA eligibility is assessed at the beginning of every student-athlete’s academic year and then re-evaluated as needed based on a ...

Usc Campus Buzzing Over Both Basketball Teams In Sweet 16

... room, dancing and singing and drenching everyone in celebration. Meanwhile, the students back on campus took to the streets to celebrate. Sophomore Maya Rush says, “It was crazy! We ran out here on Greene Street and we stayed out here for about two hours, back-and-forth between here and The Horseshoe in front of President Pastides’ house, but he wasn’t there. But when he came back he joined us on Greene Street. We left Greene Street and they said the team was about 45 minutes away so we went, ran over to the coliseum and just welcomed them back. It was amazing! I was glad to be a part of it.”. Sophomore Kishan Patel says either victory was worth a big celebration, but having both teams make the Sweet 16 made the day even more incredible. “I think it’s absolutely fantastic. The women’s (team) got a lot more attention last year and now there’s just like a lot of hype for both ...