USC basketball is facing a crucial stretch as they fight for an NCAA tournament bid. The Trojans' performance has been inconsistent, with both promising wins and disappointing losses. Key players like Desmond Claude and the emerging Wesley Yates are pivotal to their success. The article also covers major coaching updates, including D'Anton Lynn's contract extension and the prospect of Rob Ryan joining the staff.
Hi, everyone! I’m Ryan Kartje, the Times’ USC beat writer. It’s been a long few weeks for all of us. But after a week of fire-related anxiety, a few days of the whole family fighting a virus and a bummer of a night watching my Lions crumble in the playoffs, I come to you eager to talk about literally anything else! Fortunately, there’s a lot going on (as always) at USC. We’ll get to all of it in a bit.
But first, let’s turn our attention to a team we haven’t talked enough about yet in this space, a team that finds its season tiptoeing dangerously along the outside of the bubble, with six weeks still to go before the NCAA tournament. The margin for error was always going to be razor thin for Eric Musselman in his first season as USC men’s basketball coach. He understood better than anyone how many variables needed to go the Trojans’ way in order for a totally rebuilt team to compete in Year 1 in the Big Ten. He didn’t have a pure point guard on the roster or a traditional big man. There were always going to be hiccups in figuring out the best formula for success this season. Last week was a fitting example of that variance. In a win over Iowa, USC was firing on all cylinders offensively and looking like a tournament team as it rode a trio of 20-point performances from Desmond Claude, Saint Thomas and freshman Wesley Yates. Then, four days later, in a loss to Wisconsin, looked like a totally different team. Thomas was tremendous, but Claude and the rest of the Trojans offense was largely stagnant. Now USC is entering a stretch that could determine the direction of its season. A trip to Nebraska is next. After that, UCLA and Michigan State await at Galen Center. Musselman would tell you himself that this team is still trying to figure itself out. But after 18 games, a few things have crystallized about what it’s going to take from here to make the tournament. The sudden ascent of Yates is a good place to start. No one expected Yates, who sat out all of last season, to suddenly become one of the Trojans’ best players this season. When he first arrived at USC, Yates was a regular source of ire for Musselman in practice. But he’s now giving the coach exactly what his backcourt desperately needed: More quickness, more aggressiveness on defense and another offensive creator alongside Claude. Where he takes his game from here will say a lot about the Trojans’ trajectory. USC is now relying on him to help carry the load on offense. That’s a lot to ask of him, but his confidence continues to grow by the week. A lot has been asked of Claude, too, and he’s continued to answer the call. He’s shooting a tremendous 50% from the floor, while serving as the primary playmaker on an offense that’s cycled through second options. But Claude has also turned the ball over too often. In three of his last five games, he’s had more turnovers than assists. Claude is the engine that makes USC’s offense go. And he’ll have to be at his best for the Trojans to have any chance of earning a tournament bid. “Once we fully locked in and continued to get more comfortable with each other, you see what happens,” Claude said. One development that bodes well for USC from here: The recent emergence of Rashaun Agee, who’s averaging over 12 points and six rebounds per game over USC’s last three games coming off the bench. Josh Cohen remains the starter, but his minutes have dwindled significantly over the last two weeks. USC continues to get off to great starts with Cohen in the lineup, but Agee has played most of the way down the stretch. Expect that to continue, with Agee at some point replacing Cohen in the lineup. With range to the three-point line, Agee adds another element that Cohen doesn’t have, while also being a better rebounder. Even if all of those things align, the upcoming stretch for USC is going to be an uphill climb. But Musselman has shown already that he can adapt. Whatever he does next could determine USC’s season. —Of the many moves USC has made this off-season, signing D’Anton Lynn to a contract extension was the most important. Penn State made a serious effort to pry Lynn away from USC. James Franklin even made the trip to Southern California to make his case. But USC was able to hang on to its rising star defensive coordinator. For the time being, at least. Lynn’s contract extension is expected to once again rank him among the highest-paid coordinators in college football, pushing him past the $2-million mark. He’s worth every penny as USC seeks to take another leap this season on defense. The fact that USC was able to keep Lynn from leaving for his alma mater suggests that there are no coordinator jobs in college football that Lynn would leave USC for. But Lynn has a lot of admirers at the NFL level, and I don’t think it will be long before he gets the call from one of his former colleagues in Baltimore to be an NFL coordinator. Enjoy Lynn while he lasts at USC. —Rob Ryan hasn’t coached at the college level since 199
USC Trojans Basketball NCAA Tournament Eric Musselman Desmond Claude Wesley Yates D'anton Lynn Rob Ryan
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
USC Trojans Recruiting: Two Local 2026 Prospects Receive USC OffersThe USC Trojans and coach Lincoln Riley have shown they're not afraid of recruiting locally for their 2026 recruiting class. The Trojans offered two local linebacker prospects, Tristan Phillips and Anthony Jones.
Read more »
How to watch USC women’s basketball vs. UConn (12/21/24) online without cableThe No. 7 USC Trojans and JuJu Watkins face the No. 4 UConn Huskies and Paige Bueckers on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024 (12/21/24) in a regular season game at XL Center in Hartford, Conn.
Read more »
Chibuzo Agbo’s season-high 19 points lead USC men’s basketball past SouthernAgbo hit four 3-pointers and scored 18 points to lead USC to an 82-51 win ahead of its Big Ten Conference schedule, which begins on Jan. 4 when the Trojans host No. 24 Michigan.
Read more »
How to Watch: Illinois Basketball vs. USC (Game 16)The Illini are riding a five-game winning streak into a home matchup against a deep Trojans squad
Read more »
USC Women's Basketball Delivers Statement Win Over Maryland Amid WildfiresDespite facing the devastating wildfires in Southern California, USC women's basketball team persevered and secured a victory against No. 8 Maryland. The Trojans' triumph, fueled by a strong performance from Kiki Iriafen and Jordan Watkins, showcased their resilience and determination in the face of adversity.
Read more »
No. 4 USC Women's Basketball Takes on Undefeated No. 8 MarylandThe USC Trojans, led by JuJu Watkins, face off against the undefeated Maryland Terrapins in a highly anticipated Big Ten women's college basketball matchup. The game will be broadcast live on FS1 and is available for free on multiple streaming services.
Read more »