Game Day Notes Notes & Observations: USC Hosts Rutgers

During each USC game I like to offer up some notes and observations based on what I see, what I hear, and what I feel. This is my view as the game unfolds, in real time, with all the distractions included.

Pregame

The boys are back home after splitting a two-game road trip. USC squeezed out a win at Wisconsin, then dropped a brutal one-point heartbreaker at Iowa. Trojans come in 4–6 in conference, 15–6 overall, hosting Rutgers (2–8 / 9–12). Last season, Rutgers took this matchup in Piscataway back when they had a couple of NBA draft picks doing damage.

**There are legitimately more recruits on campus for the Trojan Olympics than fans inside Galen for USC vs Rutgers. That’s not hyperbole.–Yes it is but the early turnout is thin.

**By the way, the “Trojan Olympics” is just a dressed-up way of saying USC football was hosting one of its Junior Day. There were some uber high-level recruits around campus. Plenty of football chatter, nuggets, and background info that’ll resurface later when I’m not watching hoops.– Good buzz, good conversations, some legit 2027 guys like Marcus Fakatou being hosted by TomTom Topui.
—But I digress. This is a basketball game. Allegedly.

**Okay, This is what separates Southern California from the rest of the country: it’s January 31st and 84 degrees outside. Meanwhile, half the country is rationing electricity and Googling how to insulate pipes.

**The basketball band finishes its mini-concert and gets… a polite golf clap. That pretty much sums up the energy in the building.

**Hey, former USC SID Tim Tessalone is in the house. First words out of his mouth: “They gotta get better.” Efficient analysis.

**One of WeAreSC.com’s regulars tells me and Scott Schrader that Jordan Marsh is out with a turf-toe type injury. If you’re a running back or a basketball player, that’s brutal. Also explains why he didn’t go at Iowa when Kam Woods decided to turn into Steph Curry Lite and drop 33.

**DJ Malski doing his best hype-man impression, begging the crowd to stand up and make noise before the tip.

**Response: scattered compliance.–And where are the students? Did they all decide this was a beach day?

**Uniform check: USC wearing their gold with cardinal trim, which is elite. So much better than black. And while the cause was noble—Breast Cancer Awareness—men in pink basketball uniforms remains… not great.

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1ST HALF

**USC comes out ice cold. Opening possession goes nowhere—0-for-3 overall, 0-for-2 from deep. Alijah Arenas might be a scorer, but he’s clearly still fighting it. Two points on 1-for-5 shooting so far.

**Then—ohhh. Beautiful NBA-style step-through by Arenas. Everything except the finish. Missed it from point-blank range, but the crowd still gave the collective “oooh…OMG” reaction. TV timeout at 14:49 with USC up 8–4 and Jacob Cofie heading to the line for the And-1. Free throw good.–**SPOILER ALERT**--Cofie would go on to have a very good game…stay tuned. for his stats.

**7-foot-5 Gabe Dynes checks in. Gold uniforms continue to look infinitely better than pink ever did.

**Shot clock winding down, play breaks apart—time to dip into an old school bag of tricks. New school freshman Jerry Easter with the junior sky hook. Think Magic Johnson, back in the day against Boston during the 1987 NBA Finals.

**USC firmly in control now. With 7:30 left, Ezra Ausar lays it in and the Trojans lead 28–18.

**Coming out of the timeout, the crowd actually starts chanting “Defense.” Cofie responds with a hold my beer moment—steal at midcourt, coast-to-coast, two-hand slam. Galen wakes up.

**Rutgers trims it to nine, calls timeout, and comes back with a 2–2–1 full-court press. Almost works. Cofie barely gets it across midcourt…then finishes at the rim anyway. He’s 4-for-4 from the field, leading USC with 10 points.

**Late-arriving crowd alert. With 4:00 left and USC up 35–25, the lower bowl finally looks close to filled. Better late than never.–Students definitely took a beach day though.

**Halftime arrives with USC holding a comfortable 40–30 lead.

**One thing Rutgers does extremely well: set violent screens. Old-school, elbows-in, fists-clenched, 1980s-style hoops. Nothing illegal—just aggressive.

**Bonus scoreboard watching: Indiana just knocked off the UCLA Bruins in double overtime, 98–97. USC will host the Hoosiers Tuesday night. Now I need to check the Notre Dame score.–Well look at that, it’s a Champagne Sunday.–Syracuse beat the Domers 86-72.

2ND HALF

**Arenas starts the second half very differently than the first—cash from deep.–Make it two in a row. Splash. Shooting slump officially on pause.(He finished the game with 9 point on 3-9 from the field.)

**USC is diving on the floor, chasing loose balls, winning 50/50s, and suddenly the lead balloons to 19.

**Rutgers calls timeout to stop the bleeding with 16:06 left. Musselman is on the court slapping hands, lifting guys up, showing real positive energy. This version of Muss needs more airtime.

**That said—he’s still not wrong. Big Ten officiating remains hot garbage. Coach had some complaints about non-calls after the game when asked about his team’s inability to break the full court press.

**I don’t care how bad your mood is—watch the kids in the stands dancing on the big screen at Galen for five seconds and tell me you’re not smiling. Impossible.

**Trojans up 56–37 with 14:20 left after Chad Baker-Mazara drills a corner three. He’s got 14, tying Cofie for the team lead.

**Rutgers makes a push. Lead trimmed to 13 (57–44), then they go to the line. Both good. USC turns it over against the 2–2–1 press, Rutgers hits a three, and suddenly it’s 57–49 with 10:33 left.

**Rutgers just ripped off an 8–0 run in 59 seconds.—Yo. What?!

**Jerry Easter finally shuts that nonsense down with a bucket in the paint. Then CBM gets a steal, finishes at the rim, and earns the And-1 attempt.–Rutgers challenges… something? Looked borderline flagrant since CBM was in the air, but after review, no flagrant. Free throw good. Rutgers burns a timeout anyway.

**Another USC offensive lull. Lead is 63–54 with 7:21 left and Rutgers heading to the line after the timeout. This is a danger zone moment.

**Breaking the press continues to be an adventure. Nearly turns it over again after a made free throw.

**Ausar to the line—both good. He’s now 4-for-6 and USC leads 65–55.–Ezra been practicing his FTs. 21 points, 7 rebounds including 9-11 from the charity stripe.

**Rutgers picks up its 10th team foul with 6:00 to play. Ausar is in rhythm—four straight free throws. If USC simply makes FTs, this game ends quietly.–Yeah, that ain’t happening. 69–55 Trojans.

**Stat check: Cofie with a double-double (14 & 10). CBM now leading with 17. Ausar sitting at 14 points and 7 boards.

**Rutgers has no answer when Ausar gets the ball in the paint. Another And-1. Good. Lead back to 17 with 4:30 left. This should be over.

**As a former high school basketball coach, nothing infuriates me more than watching players do the worst possible things against a press—picking the ball up in the corner or along the sideline. Stop. Doing. That.

**With 3:33 left, Rutgers scores four straight and forces a steal because USC still can’t handle the press. 74–61.

**Then CBM completely loses Rutgers’ shooter, gives up a three, and the lead drops to 10. Musselman is beside himself, chewing on CBM’s ears.

**Coach!…teach them how to break the press during the timeout, because it’s coming again. Guaranteed!

**The collective team basketball IQ right now is… concerning.

**Irony alert: after the game, Muss praised CBM for making a “high IQ” defensive play late—stealing the ball with five seconds left when Rutgers had a chance to tie. Worst case, they foul and Rutgers shoots two down three. Chad sealed it. That part? True.

**But right now? I’m about to go full Bobby Knight and throw something onto the court. Lead down to 78–73 with 55.5 seconds left. I am fully convinced this team has never practiced against a 2–2–1 press.

**Another turnover. Another Rutgers bucket. Watching USC try to inbound against pressure is like watching the Harlem Globetrotters clown the Washington Generals—except it’s unintentional and painful.
What. Is. Happening. Inside. Their. Heads?

**Final score says USC wins 78–75.–But did they?

**Why is this team so locked in on the road, against hostile crowds, yet so willing to flirt with disaster at home against sub-.500 teams?

That’s the real question walking out of Galen tonight.