After a near miss against No.7 Michigan State in overtime at home, Rutgers men’s basketball will look to break their four game losing streak as they head out to Los Angeles to take on USC on Saturday. The Scarlet Knights game against the Trojans is the first part of their two game LA road trip as they are set to take on UCLA the following Tuesday.
USC has cemented itself as a middle of the pack Big Ten team, earning wins over other middle of the pack teams like Iowa and Wisconsin, but losing to lower
teams like Northwestern and Washington.
The Trojans are led by guards Chad Baker-Mazara, who is averaging 18.9 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, and 3 assists per game. Right behind him in scoring is Forward Ezra Ausar, who is averaging 15.9 points per game and six rebounds per game. Forward Jacob Cofie leads the team in rebounds, grabbing an average of 7.3 per game.
Guard Rodney Rice looked like he could be a star for the Trojans, as he averaged 20.3 points and 6 assists per game in the six games he played, but an injury and resulting surgery will keep him on the sideline for the rest of the year.
As a team, USC is averaging 81.6 points per game, 37.4 rebounds per game, and 15.6 assists per game. They shoot 47 percent on field goals, 71.4 percent from the line, and 31.8 percent from three. In comparison, Rutgers is averaging 70.1 points per game, 34.7 rebounds per game, 10.7 assists per game while shooting 40.6 percent on field goals, 73.4 percent from the line, and 32.2 percent from three.
The best formula for the Knights to win this game lies in the turnover department. If they can force USC to have significantly more turnovers than them, it will go a long way into helping them win. The fact that they won the turnover margin by a significant amount was the main reason why Rutgers earned an overtime victory over Oregon, and why they almost knocked off Michigan State despite being heavily outmatched on paper. They also need to be competitive on the boards and not have lopsided rebound totals like they had last game. Look for them to be more aggressive on the offensive glass as they have been in games past.
Rutgers vs USC will tip off at 7 pm inside the Galen center in LA. Live coverage for the game will be available on Peacock.
