After three blowouts to open the season that exceeded all expectations, USC men’s basketball came crashing back down to earth on Thursday night.
It took USC three overtimes to beat Troy, a mediocre Sun Belt team, at Galen Center. It looked a lot like last season, when USC got in a lot of unexpected close battles with smaller programs.
But the Trojans did pull out the win on a miracle shot by unlikely hero Jordan Marsh. Between Marsh’s heroics and Rodney Rice’s historic triple double earlier in the season against Illinois State, at least the Trojans keep it exciting. Excitement is certainly needed in Eric Musselman’s program, almost as much as consistent winning.
What will the box office Trojans do next? Here are five things to watch as USC embarks heads to Hawaii for the Southwest Maui invitational and takes on Boise State to open the tournament:
Can USC win comfortably?
This has to be the biggest story after the 3OT epic against Troy. Can USC prove that was a one-time thing, or will they get locked into unnecessary drama again?
Boise State is not a very good team. The Broncos know what it’s like to lose a game everyone expected you to win; they lost to Division II Hawaii Pacific to open the season. Their trip to Hawaii is certainly going to bring up some bad memories.
The Broncos also went down to the wire with 1-4 Big Sky team Montana State. But they are coming off their best win, a 62-59 triumph over Wichita State. So at least they’re getting better.
But again, this is a mediocre Mountain West team at best. USC is a team that is striving to compete in the Big Ten. Can they play like it?
Will fatigue factor in?
USC played late into the night on Thursday and then turned around and immediately took the long flight to Hawaii on Friday. They will also be dealing with the three hour time change.
They have the weekend to adjust (good on Eric Musselman for getting them out to Maui early) but resting diligently will still be important for USC.
Can USC play stronger defense?
Eric Musselman led teams are typically known for their defensive strengths. But it’s USC’s offense that’s been great to open the season, while the defense has been so-so.
USC has four players with impressive scoring averages: Chad Baker-Mazzara (22.5 points per game), Rodney Rice (20.5 points per game), Ezra Ausar (18.3 points per game) and Jacob Cofie (10.8 points per game).
That means those four combined are averaging 72.1 points per game. Rice had the second triple double in USC history, Baker-Mazara had 34 points against Troy, USC’s highest total since OJ Mayo in 2008.
But USC has also allowed 64 or more points in every single game.
The Trojans could probably just outscore Boise State and still win, but it sure would be nice to see a complimentary offensive and defensive performance.
Amarion Dickerson — a new starter going forward?
USC started the same five players in its first three games: Chad Baker-Mazara, Rodney Rice, Ezra Ausar, Jacob Cofie and Terrance Williams II. But for the game against Troy, Amarion Dickerson replaced Williams II in the starting lineup.
Dickerson played 34 minutes against Troy while Williams II played only 16.
Williams II is USC’s only returning player from 2024-25, so it was certainly nice for Trojan fans to see a familiar face in the lineup. But has the Robert Morris transfer Dickerson played his way into the starting lineup permanently, or was that just a matchup thing against Troy? We will find out against Boise State.
How many Hawaii Pacific “fans” show up?
Hawaii Pacific isn’t playing in this tournament. The Sharks aren’t even from the same island — they play their home games in Honolulu.
But their win against Boise State started a movement of fans, especially Boise State’s Mountain West rivals, buying merchandise to troll the Broncos.
No other Mountain West teams are in the tournament. But it’s possible the Sharks have also gained some local fans, or a USC fan will buy into the trolling.
I just think it’s funny for Boise State to have to go to Hawaii after losing to Hawaii Pacific in the most infamous loss of the 2025-26 season so far, and I am curious to see if anyone will take advantage of the situation and troll the Broncos.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: 5 things to watch in USC basketball Maui opener vs Boise State
Reporting by Ethan Inman, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
