USC men’s basketball still missing its home-court advantage
The Trojans play No. 7 Michigan State on Saturday at the Galen Center, where they’ve gone just 1-3 in Big Ten games
USC players watch from the bench during the final minute of their loss to UCLA on Jan. 27 at the Galen Center. (Photo by David Crane, LADN/SCNG)
USC vs. No. 7 Michigan State,1:30 p.m. Saturday,Galen Center
TV/radio: Peacock/710 AM
Luca Evans (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — In mid-January, Rafi and Christine Mansourian sat in the lower basin of the Galen Center, two among dozens in attendance clutching a popsicle-stick fathead of reserve guard Avand Dorian.
USC’s game against Wisconsin on Jan. 18 was dubbed an “Armenian Heritage Celebration,” a chance to honor Dorian, making waves as a sophomore who’d walked onto head coach Eric Musselman’s first-year program as the first Armenian player in USC men’s basketball history. Dorian was the star of AGBU Manoogian-Demirdijan School, an Armenian college-prep school in Winnetka, and a grassroots effort quickly spread among the Armenian community in Los Angeles to gobble up tickets to USC-Wisconsin.
“This is something that has never happened before in the Armenian community,” Rafi Mansourian said a few minutes before USC-Wisconsin tipped. “So, we’re really cherishing it and supporting it as much as we can.”
At least 500 members of that community, as Mansourian estimated, sat in Galen that Saturday, many wearing merch of Dorian’s No. 14 USC jersey. And at several points throughout the second half, the Armenian faithful rocked Galen in plainly audible calls for Dorian: We-want-A-Vand!
They never got him. It was a proud night, in many ways, and yet USC lost 84-69 to Wisconsin as another home game slipped away. The Trojans played from behind, and couldn’t find a few minutes for Dorian – and still haven’t quite managed to put a consistent 40 minutes of Big Ten play in front of Los Angeles home crowds.
“I mean, you’ve got to win eight out of 10 games at home,” Musselman said after that loss, “or you can’t play in March. Again, that’s factual. Not an opinion.”
Indeed, any first-year hope of a surprise at-large NCAA Tournament berth has dwindled for USC (12-8, 4-5 Big Ten) with a string of conference losses at home. Musselman’s Trojans have played with a mentality to punch other teams first on the road, as big Rashaun Agee put it after USC hosted UCLA on Monday; but they’ve gotten “too relaxed” at home, Agee said, these Trojans now sitting at 1-3 in Big Ten games at Galen after the loss to UCLA.
“We expect the crowd to be there every game, but we’re not producing,” guard Wesley Yates III said after the UCLA loss. “Like, honestly, like, who’s going to want to come watch us if we’re not producing?”
Part of the problem, perhaps, is that USC’s home environments haven’t exactly been overwhelmingly hostile to road opponents, as Musselman has hinted at several times. USC has averaged about 6,698 fans across Big Ten home games at the Galen Center, or about 65% capacity.
The traditional Big Ten opponents the Trojans have played on the road (Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska), meanwhile, have all averaged more than 14,500 fans and 90% capacity in the Big Ten this year, a conference notoriously brutal on road teams without even factoring in a brutal west-to-east travel schedule for USC.
Complicating matters, too, is the fact that Big Ten fans both travel well and are entrenched in Los Angeles, with a large percentage of opposing fans in the Galen Center making themselves audibly apparent in USC’s losses to both Michigan and Wisconsin.
“We had no home-court advantage, I mean – whether, that’s just how it is,” Musselman said the loss to Wisconsin. “It’s been that way. And we gotta continue to work as a program to make it more of a home-court advantage.”
That’ll start Saturday afternoon against No. 7 Michigan State, USC’s biggest non-UCLA matchup of the season and a game that’ll likely serve as the last gasp on any USC tournament hopes, by Musselman’s own determination. An upset would suddenly give the Trojans two ranked wins and three Quad One wins; a loss would drop USC’s home conference record to 1-4.
“I feel like, we just gotta come – when we play at home, we gotta be even more focused,” Yates III said. “Like, 10 times more.”
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Evaluating the most important returning player for each B1G football program Penn State Nittany Lions: QB Drew Allar Indiana Hoosiers: WR Elijah Sarratt Ohio State Buckeyes: WR Jeremiah Smith Oregon Ducks: Edge Matayo Uiagaleilei Oregon lost star edge rusher Jordan Burch to an injury midseason in 2024, and many were concerned about how the pass rush would perform without him. Uiagaleilei stepped up in a massive way, finishing the season with 10.5 sacks, the third-most in the conference. Several changes are coming on the offensive side for the Ducks, so they’ll need Uiagaleilei and the defense to hold strong for… Read more »
I must admit that when Jen Cohen was hired, I thought it was an affirmative action decision.Based on her actions and hires, she might be the best USC AD in my lifetime.
I can’t totally remember, or explain why — but I always thought Jen Cohen would be good for USC. Maybe I was just desperate to believe USC could get this big hire right after so many repeated and sorry Trojan athletic dept issues. She’s always had big-time achiever, problem solver, courageous thinker, and ambitious savvy leader written all over her. For example, from Wiki: After applying to the University of Washington and getting waitlisted, Cohen attended San Diego State University and graduated in 1991. She then went on to earn a master’s degree in physical education with an emphasis in sports administration from Pacific Lutheran… Read more »
USC’s Big Youth Movement Is Part of Its Long Overdue and Critical Trojan Personnel Makeover USC’s deficient football infrastructure got a big infusion of young talent thanks to Jen Cohen as part of the change necessary to get the Trojans back among the national elite. USC unleashes its power with the hiring of a fantastic new 30-year old GM. R.J. Abeytia (USCFootball.com) — USC’s new personnel staff hits the ground running Saturday for the Trojans’ showcase underclassman event of the winter. Juniors, sophomores and even some freshmen step into the first big event of the Chad Bowden Era. We’ll hear no shortage of… Read more »
Thanks Allen for posting this here. Just can’t wait to see who she hires as the next Head Football Coach. Then USC football can take off. Till then we’ll see…
Yes it was up to Jen to solve this massive hole in the program infrastructure due to the head coach couldn’t, wouldn’t open his eyes up to the talent in his backyard that all the HC’s in the top programs in CFB certainly saw. And to think Riley was so convinced he could go into SEC Country and pull out linemen just waiting for his visit? And I can image he’s being laughed at by coaches from out of California as they all just walk in here and take their pick with the red carpet being rolled out to them.… Read more »
Bowden and his crew will line up 5* recruits, get them primed and then comes the sit down with The Brat. The player and his parents come in and say, “coach we have a few questions for you. First why would you have a heavy pass game plan when going up against 2 of the top 3 pass defenses in the country? Second, with 5 min left in the 4th, with the lead and the ball, why do you pass the ball instead of run out the clock? And third, when you drove the ball down the field with a… Read more »
Golden…..I have nothing personally against Riley but you hit it on the head. If my son had a 30% chance as a 5 star to go to the NFL heaven of millions……I would want the best coaching around for him….even if I had to travel, freeze to death or miss games. Riley (we are stuck with him anyway so it’s not about us) needs to clean up his act this year…….no more really stupid game management. You make a bad decision once in a while….ok…..who does not…..but when everyone in the bar gets up and screams at the set……nope.
All the (now dead) talk of USC hiring a genious coach, but the real genious was the hire of Jen Cohen. She has been nothing short of brilliant. Whatever she is paid is not enough. The next Prez better do everything possible to develop a great working relationship with her and continue to let her follow her intuition and roadmap for USC sports.
Galen has no trouble getting a raucous crowd when the Juju/ Kiki/Lindsey show is in town. Just win baby! Muss has a big rebuild to do, but he seems to be well on his way. Give him a couple years.
Detroit Lions Hire Former Stanford Coach David Shaw As Passing Game Coordinator Kyron Samuels (SI.com) — The Detroit Lions have announced the hiring of David Shaw as their passing game coordinator. Shaw, who has two decades of coaching experience in the NFL and NCAA, has a unique tie to former USC Trojans WR, now Lions All-Pro, Amon-Ra St. Brown. St. Brown now has the replacement for newly-appointed Chicago Bears HC Ben Johnson in the passing game that’s helped him become a multiple-time All-Pro. At Stanford, Shaw coached against Amon-Ra St. Brown while he was at USC, and he coached… Read more »
Grading every 2025 Big Ten transfer portal class Grant Hughes (247Sports) — Grades are formulated based on an examination of total commits, average rating per commit and how each team addressed needs. Teams weren’t knocked for having small classes as long as they filled a need. Some bigger classes received less than desirable marks after exiting the first window without filling major holes. Grades ranged from A+ to F. Nebraska boasts the Big Ten’s top-rated class at No. 9 nationally. Six other Big Ten programs rank in the top 25 of the rankings: Oregon (No. 11), Wisconsin (No. 14), Indiana (No.… Read more »
USC ranks 28th nationally in transfers according to 247Sports (which doesn’t count transfers out), and 14th in recruits for a 17th overall ranking. Again USC is actually doing okay in talent despite the negative of its HC.
Whatever happened to We Are SC? A huge brand like SC football is 9th in the BIG.
You call that “okay?” So much for expectations, huh? We’ve come a long way baby, down that is.
I’m expecting our new fantastic GM, Chad Bowden, the Irish deserter, and his elite, handpicked recruiting staff to start fixing things big-time with better evaluations and stronger recruiting tactics. Don’t know how long it will take, but hopefully, not long. This weekend would be a good start.
As you know….We are getting enough talent to beat the usual suspects in the BIG. We are sub par if we have national title hopes or dreams of competing with teams like Ohio State/Oregon/Georgia No matter what Bowden does IMO to get a boatload of elite talent Riley is going to need a season of performing as a top tier coach. There is too much NFL cash at stake for a 5 star talent to trust his future to a guy that can’t figure out when to call time out or game plan properly. . He will nibble the kids… Read more »
illinoisusc — Take the time to read R.J. Abeytia’s detailed and thorough account of how USC is reforming itself under Jen Cohen and a younger breed of badly needed infrastructure help. I just posted it above. It’s a very well-done piece on USCFootball.com which I totally agree with. I think you’ll find it valuable. Optimism has justifiably returned to USC football with the complete overhaul of the Trojan football recruiting staff. LR himself has never been a strong recruiter, but with the new people in place inside the USC football offices, thankfully we now have the organizational ability to truly… Read more »
Allen we all agree Jen Cohen is doing a great job but with one hand tied behind her back. You can have the greatest designers, builders and build a beautiful resort and assemble the greatest sales staff. But you are still trying to sell resort property along the Salton Sea. Smart buyers are coming.
But with Cohen so fully engaged in trying to repair LR’s program, I can’t help but be more positive about USC’s football future in both the immediate and long term, regardless of our HC.
After reading the article…..I agree….Jen sounds like eating the difference between mud and Black Forest Cake. She knows what she is doing. That was a great hire. I also believe she is setting the next coach up to win…..the long term looks great. Unfortunately she and we are stuck with him for the short and perhaps intermediate thanks to Bohn. . and I don’t think its a time issue in regards to his coaching decisions…..I believe he was not evaluated correctly when he was hired and has tons of faults. Given all the improvements and some small improvement in his… Read more »
Illinois I agree with your synopses on Bohn not fully evaluating Riley’s abilities running a football program. As we have been told countless times there is no evidence of LR rebuilding a program. He never had to. So Bohn assumed this wouldn’t be as big a situation as it became. Bohn definitely wanted to make splash in hiring a big name. Don’t know who else he had on his short list if LR didn’t bite. But 100million plus is hard to turn your back to. And USC was a bigger name in academics & sports than where he was at.… Read more »
The more we build around Linkin’, the more the pressure for him to be a coach that coaches to what he has, in terms of personnel.
If he continues to die on his hill of “The Pirate’s” pass happy offense, the more apparent it will be that he will be forced out. The next potential genius coach will see attractive locations, facilities and the new young energetic support staff and be wager to sign a contract!
Allen Wallace, I like the Kool-are you are bringing!
USC players watch from the bench during the final minute of their loss to UCLA on Jan. 27 at the Galen Center. (Photo by David Crane, LADN/SCNG)
Michigan State will beat UCLA on tuesday. They won’t lose 2 in a row.
Evaluating the most important returning player for each B1G football program Penn State Nittany Lions: QB Drew Allar Indiana Hoosiers: WR Elijah Sarratt Ohio State Buckeyes: WR Jeremiah Smith Oregon Ducks: Edge Matayo Uiagaleilei Oregon lost star edge rusher Jordan Burch to an injury midseason in 2024, and many were concerned about how the pass rush would perform without him. Uiagaleilei stepped up in a massive way, finishing the season with 10.5 sacks, the third-most in the conference. Several changes are coming on the offensive side for the Ducks, so they’ll need Uiagaleilei and the defense to hold strong for… Read more »
Hip Hip Hooray! USC beats turnover-plagued (13) MICH ST at Galen 70-64, snapping the Spartans’ 13-game winning streak.
Wow. USC leads #7 MICH ST 55-45 with 13 mins to go at Galen. Hold on Trojans!
My Hero. Saving USC football/athletics, a day at a time…
I must admit that when Jen Cohen was hired, I thought it was an affirmative action decision.Based on her actions and hires, she might be the best USC AD in my lifetime.
I can’t totally remember, or explain why — but I always thought Jen Cohen would be good for USC. Maybe I was just desperate to believe USC could get this big hire right after so many repeated and sorry Trojan athletic dept issues. She’s always had big-time achiever, problem solver, courageous thinker, and ambitious savvy leader written all over her. For example, from Wiki: After applying to the University of Washington and getting waitlisted, Cohen attended San Diego State University and graduated in 1991. She then went on to earn a master’s degree in physical education with an emphasis in sports administration from Pacific Lutheran… Read more »
No question she is.
USC’s Big Youth Movement Is Part of Its Long Overdue and Critical Trojan Personnel Makeover USC’s deficient football infrastructure got a big infusion of young talent thanks to Jen Cohen as part of the change necessary to get the Trojans back among the national elite. USC unleashes its power with the hiring of a fantastic new 30-year old GM. R.J. Abeytia (USCFootball.com) — USC’s new personnel staff hits the ground running Saturday for the Trojans’ showcase underclassman event of the winter. Juniors, sophomores and even some freshmen step into the first big event of the Chad Bowden Era. We’ll hear no shortage of… Read more »
One thing we are not hearing: “He knows USC”. Thank God.
Maybe God is truly a Trojan after all!
Well, of course He is. You wouldn’t expect Him to be a Cal Westwood grad, right?
Only when the little gutties beat us eight straight. Remember that torture from ’91-98.
Yes, that was our time in the wilderness, or the trials of Job. Take your pick….
Thanks Allen for posting this here. Just can’t wait to see who she hires as the next Head Football Coach. Then USC football can take off. Till then we’ll see…
Yes it was up to Jen to solve this massive hole in the program infrastructure due to the head coach couldn’t, wouldn’t open his eyes up to the talent in his backyard that all the HC’s in the top programs in CFB certainly saw. And to think Riley was so convinced he could go into SEC Country and pull out linemen just waiting for his visit? And I can image he’s being laughed at by coaches from out of California as they all just walk in here and take their pick with the red carpet being rolled out to them.… Read more »
Bowden and his crew will line up 5* recruits, get them primed and then comes the sit down with The Brat. The player and his parents come in and say, “coach we have a few questions for you. First why would you have a heavy pass game plan when going up against 2 of the top 3 pass defenses in the country? Second, with 5 min left in the 4th, with the lead and the ball, why do you pass the ball instead of run out the clock? And third, when you drove the ball down the field with a… Read more »
Golden…..I have nothing personally against Riley but you hit it on the head. If my son had a 30% chance as a 5 star to go to the NFL heaven of millions……I would want the best coaching around for him….even if I had to travel, freeze to death or miss games. Riley (we are stuck with him anyway so it’s not about us) needs to clean up his act this year…….no more really stupid game management. You make a bad decision once in a while….ok…..who does not…..but when everyone in the bar gets up and screams at the set……nope.
That could happen, GT.
All the (now dead) talk of USC hiring a genious coach, but the real genious was the hire of Jen Cohen. She has been nothing short of brilliant. Whatever she is paid is not enough. The next Prez better do everything possible to develop a great working relationship with her and continue to let her follow her intuition and roadmap for USC sports.
Galen has no trouble getting a raucous crowd when the Juju/ Kiki/Lindsey show is in town. Just win baby! Muss has a big rebuild to do, but he seems to be well on his way. Give him a couple years.
Detroit Lions Hire Former Stanford Coach David Shaw As Passing Game Coordinator Kyron Samuels (SI.com) — The Detroit Lions have announced the hiring of David Shaw as their passing game coordinator. Shaw, who has two decades of coaching experience in the NFL and NCAA, has a unique tie to former USC Trojans WR, now Lions All-Pro, Amon-Ra St. Brown. St. Brown now has the replacement for newly-appointed Chicago Bears HC Ben Johnson in the passing game that’s helped him become a multiple-time All-Pro. At Stanford, Shaw coached against Amon-Ra St. Brown while he was at USC, and he coached… Read more »
Grading every 2025 Big Ten transfer portal class Grant Hughes (247Sports) — Grades are formulated based on an examination of total commits, average rating per commit and how each team addressed needs. Teams weren’t knocked for having small classes as long as they filled a need. Some bigger classes received less than desirable marks after exiting the first window without filling major holes. Grades ranged from A+ to F. Nebraska boasts the Big Ten’s top-rated class at No. 9 nationally. Six other Big Ten programs rank in the top 25 of the rankings: Oregon (No. 11), Wisconsin (No. 14), Indiana (No.… Read more »
USC ranks 28th nationally in transfers according to 247Sports (which doesn’t count transfers out), and 14th in recruits for a 17th overall ranking. Again USC is actually doing okay in talent despite the negative of its HC.
Whatever happened to We Are SC? A huge brand like SC football is 9th in the BIG.
You call that “okay?” So much for expectations, huh? We’ve come a long way baby, down that is.
I’m expecting our new fantastic GM, Chad Bowden, the Irish deserter, and his elite, handpicked recruiting staff to start fixing things big-time with better evaluations and stronger recruiting tactics. Don’t know how long it will take, but hopefully, not long. This weekend would be a good start.
As you know….We are getting enough talent to beat the usual suspects in the BIG. We are sub par if we have national title hopes or dreams of competing with teams like Ohio State/Oregon/Georgia No matter what Bowden does IMO to get a boatload of elite talent Riley is going to need a season of performing as a top tier coach. There is too much NFL cash at stake for a 5 star talent to trust his future to a guy that can’t figure out when to call time out or game plan properly. . He will nibble the kids… Read more »
illinoisusc — Take the time to read R.J. Abeytia’s detailed and thorough account of how USC is reforming itself under Jen Cohen and a younger breed of badly needed infrastructure help. I just posted it above. It’s a very well-done piece on USCFootball.com which I totally agree with. I think you’ll find it valuable. Optimism has justifiably returned to USC football with the complete overhaul of the Trojan football recruiting staff. LR himself has never been a strong recruiter, but with the new people in place inside the USC football offices, thankfully we now have the organizational ability to truly… Read more »
Allen we all agree Jen Cohen is doing a great job but with one hand tied behind her back. You can have the greatest designers, builders and build a beautiful resort and assemble the greatest sales staff. But you are still trying to sell resort property along the Salton Sea. Smart buyers are coming.
No doubt the pressure is on LR as never before.
But with Cohen so fully engaged in trying to repair LR’s program, I can’t help but be more positive about USC’s football future in both the immediate and long term, regardless of our HC.
After reading the article…..I agree….Jen sounds like eating the difference between mud and Black Forest Cake. She knows what she is doing. That was a great hire. I also believe she is setting the next coach up to win…..the long term looks great. Unfortunately she and we are stuck with him for the short and perhaps intermediate thanks to Bohn. . and I don’t think its a time issue in regards to his coaching decisions…..I believe he was not evaluated correctly when he was hired and has tons of faults. Given all the improvements and some small improvement in his… Read more »
Illinois I agree with your synopses on Bohn not fully evaluating Riley’s abilities running a football program. As we have been told countless times there is no evidence of LR rebuilding a program. He never had to. So Bohn assumed this wouldn’t be as big a situation as it became. Bohn definitely wanted to make splash in hiring a big name. Don’t know who else he had on his short list if LR didn’t bite. But 100million plus is hard to turn your back to. And USC was a bigger name in academics & sports than where he was at.… Read more »
Do you remember the look on Bohn’s face when he announced LR’s arrival? Better than sex.
The more we build around Linkin’, the more the pressure for him to be a coach that coaches to what he has, in terms of personnel.
If he continues to die on his hill of “The Pirate’s” pass happy offense, the more apparent it will be that he will be forced out. The next potential genius coach will see attractive locations, facilities and the new young energetic support staff and be wager to sign a contract!
Allen Wallace, I like the Kool-are you are bringing!