2020–21 USC Trojans men's basketball team

2020–21 USC Trojans men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Elite Eight
ConferencePac-12 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 9
APNo. 23т
Record25–8 (15–5 Pac-12)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Jason Hart (8th season)
  • Chris Capko (5th season)
  • Eric Mobley (3rd season)
Home arenaGalen Center
Seasons
2020–21 Pac-12 Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 17 Oregon 14 – 4   .778 21 – 7   .750
No. 9 USC 15 – 5   .750 25 – 8   .758
No. 23 Colorado 14 – 6   .700 23 – 9   .719
No. 7 UCLA 13 – 6   .684 22 – 10   .688
Arizona* 11 – 9   .550 17 – 9   .654
No. 20 Oregon State † 10 – 10   .500 20 – 13   .606
Stanford 10 – 10   .500 14 – 13   .519
Utah 8 – 11   .421 12 – 13   .480
Arizona State 7 – 10   .412 11 – 14   .440
Washington State 7 – 12   .368 14 – 13   .519
Washington 4 – 16   .200 5 – 21   .192
California 3 – 17   .150 9 – 20   .310
*Ineligible for the conference and NCAA tournaments due to self-imposed postseason ban.
† Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 2020–21 USC Trojans men's basketball team represented the University of Southern California during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by eighth-year head coach Andy Enfield, they played their home games at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California as members of the Pac-12 Conference. They finished the season 25-8, 15-5 in Pac-12 Play to finish in 2nd place. They defeated Utah in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 tournament before losing in the semifinals to Colorado. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Drake, Kansas, and Oregon to advance to the Elite Eight where they lost to Gonzaga.

Previous season

See also: 2019-20 USC Trojans men's basketball team

The 2019–20 USC Trojans ended the season at 22–9 overall, and a 11-7 Conference record for a tie for 3rd Place with Arizona State. They were set to take on Arizona in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 tournament. However, the remainder of the Pac-12 Tournament, and all other postseason tournaments, were cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Off-season

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for Departure
Kyle Sturdivant 1 G 6'3" 200 Freshman Norcross, GA Transferred to Georgia Tech
Jonah Mathews 2 G 6'3" 205 Senior Santa Monica, CA Graduated
Elijah Weaver 3 G 6'6" 210 Sophomore Cocoa, FL Transferred to Dayton
Daniel Utomi 4 G 6'6" 225 GS Senior Houston, TX Graduated/signed to play professional in Finland with Kauhajoki Karhu
Quinton Adlesh 10 G 6'1" 200 GS Senior Arroyo Grande, CA Graduated
Charles O'Bannon Jr. 13 G 6'6" 210 RS Sophomore Compton, CA Mid-season transferred to TCU
Onyeka Okongwu 21 F 6'9" 245 Freshman Chino Hills, CA Declared for the 2020 NBA draft; selected 6th overall by the Atlanta Hawks
Nick Rakocevic 31 F 6'11" 225 Senior Chicago, IL Graduated

Incoming transfers

Name Num Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Chevez Goodwin 1 F 6'9" 225 Redshirt Senior Columbia, SC Transferred from Wofford. Will be eligible to play immediately since Goodwin graduated from Wofford.
Tahj Eaddy 2 G 6'2" 165 Redshirt Senior West Haven, CT Transferred from Santa Clara. Will be eligible to play immediately since Eaddy graduated from Santa Clara.
Isaiah White 5 G 6'7" 210 Redshirt Senior Rancho Cucamoga, CA Transferred from Utah Valley. Will be eligible to play immediately since White graduated from Utah Valley.
Drew Peterson 13 G 6'8" 195 Junior Libertyville, IL Transferred from Rice. Peterson was granted a waiver for immediate eligibility. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Joshua Morgan 24 F 6'11" 210 Sophomore Sacramento, CA Transferred from Long Beach State. Under NCAA transfer rules, Morgan will have to sit out the 2020–21 season. Will have three years of remaining eligibility.
Reggie Parris 32 G 6'3" 190 Junior Denver, CO Transferred from San Diego. Will join the team as a walk-on.
Amar Ross 55 G 5'7" 150 Junior Long Beach, CA Transferred from Bethesda. Will join the team as a walk-on.

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Evan Mobley
C / PF 		Murrieta, CA Rancho Christian School (CA) 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Aug 15, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 97
Reese Dixon-Waters
SG 		Long Beach, CA St. Bernard (CA) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Mar 24, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 81
Boubacar Coulibaly
C 		Bamako, Mali San Gabriel Academy (CA) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Mar 13, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 79
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "USC 2020 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  • "2020 USC Trojans Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  • "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 3, 2021.

2021 Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2021 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Harrison Hornery
PF 		Toowoomba, Australia Mater Dei (CA) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Oct 31, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 80
Malik Thomas
SG 		Fontana, CA Damien (CA) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Mar 27, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 82
Kobe Johnson
SG 		Milwaukee, WI Nicolet (WI) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sep 3, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 79
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

2020–21 USC Trojans men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Talin Lewis (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Oaks Christian Westlake Village, CA
F 1 Chevez Goodwin 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Sr Wofford Columbia, SC
G 2 Tahj Eaddy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 165 lb (75 kg) RS Sr Santa Clara West Haven, CT
F 3 Isaiah Mobley 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) So Rancho Christian School Murrieta, CA
F 4 Evan Mobley 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Fr Rancho Christian School Murrieta, CA
G 5 Isaiah White 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Sr Utah Valley Rancho Cucamonga, CA
F 12 Boubacar Coulibaly 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr San Gabriel Academy Bamako, Mali
G 13 Drew Peterson 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Rice Libertyville, IL
G 14 McKay Anderson (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Sr Pasadena City College La Cañada, CA
G 20 Ethan Anderson 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 215 lb (98 kg) So Fairfax HS Los Angeles, CA
G 21 Reese Dixon-Waters 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr St. Bernard HS Long Beach, CA
F 23 Max Agbonkpolo 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Santa Margarita HS Laguna Niguel, CA
F 24 Joshua Morgan 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Long Beach State Sacramento, CA
G 30 Noah Baumann 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Jr San Jose State Phoenix, AZ
G 32 Reggie Parris (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr San Diego Denver, CO
G 55 Amar Ross (W) 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) 150 lb (68 kg) Jr Bethesda Long Beach, CA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Team Recognition

  • Andy Enfield
    • John R. Wooden Pac-12 Coach of the Year
    • Naismith Trophy Men's Coach of the Year Late Season Watch List
  • Evan Mobley
    • Pac-12 Player of the Year
    • Pac-12 Freshman of the Year
    • Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year
    • All-Pac-12 First Team
    • Pac-12 All-Freshman Team
    • Pac-12 All-Defensive Team
    • Pac-12 Freshman of the Week (Week 2, Week 3, Week 7, Week 9, Week 11, Week 13)[1]
    • Pac-12 Men's Basketball Preseason Media First Team All-Conference [2]
    • Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watch List[3]
    • Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List[4]
    • Wooden Award Late Season Top 20 Watch List
    • NABC Player Of The Year Watch List[5]
    • Naismith Trophy Watch List[6]
    • Naismith Defensive Play of the Year Award Watch List
    • Naismith Player of the Week (Week 13)[7]
    • Naismith National Player of the Year Semifinalist
    • Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Watch List[8]
    • Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Top 10 Finalist
    • NCAA Player of the Week[9]
    • Pac-12 Player of the Week (Week 11) - 2nd player in the conference, after Onyeka Okongwu, to ever be recognized as player of the week and freshman of the week during the same week.
  • Tahj Eaddy
    • All-Pac-12 Second Team

Injuries

  • E. Anderson wasn't available for the UConn game due to back spasms. He remained on the sidelines until his return on January 14, 2021 against Washington.

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 25, 2020*
6:00 pm, P12N 		California Baptist W 95–87 OT 1–0
  21 – E. Mobley   10 – I. Mobley   4 – 2 Tied  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
November 28, 2020*
6:00 pm, P12N 		Montana W 76–62  2–0
  13 – Peterson   13 – I. Mobley   5 – E. Anderson  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
December 1, 2020*
11:30 am, ESPN2 		vs. BYU
Legends Classic 		W 79–53  3–0
  19 – Peterson   11 – 2 Tied   4 – Eaddy  Mohegan Sun Arena (0)
Uncasville, CT
December 3, 2020*
4:00 pm, ESPN 		vs. UConn
Legends Classic 		L 58–61  3–1
  17 – E. Mobley   7 – E. Mobley   3 – E. Mobley  Mohegan Sun Arena (0)
Uncasville, CT
December 8, 2020*
7:00 pm, P12N 		UC Irvine W 91–56  4–1
  22 – E. Mobley   10 – E. Mobley   4 – Agbonkpolo  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
December 16, 2020*
6:00 pm, P12N 		San Francisco Canceled[10] Galen Center 
Los Angeles, CA
December 23, 2020*
2:00 pm, P12N 		Texas Southern Canceled[10] Galen Center 
Los Angeles, CA
December 29, 2020*
4:00 pm, P12N 		Santa Clara[a] W 86–63  5–1
  17 – E. Mobley   7 – 2 Tied   9 – Peterson  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
December 31, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN 		Colorado L 62–72  5–2
(0–1) 		 16 – Eaddy   7 – E. Mobley   5 – Eaddy  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
January 2, 2021
1:00 pm, P12N 		Utah W 64–46  6–2
(1–1) 		 18 – Eaddy   11 – Petersen   5 – Eaddy  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
January 7, 2021
6:00 pm, ESPN2 		at Arizona W 87–73  7–2
(2–1) 		 22 – White   11 – E. Mobley   10 – Peterson  McKale Center (0)
Tucson, AZ
January 9, 2021
4:00 pm, P12N 		at Arizona State W 73–64  8–2
(3–1) 		 19 – E. Mobley   13 – E. Mobley   4 – Eaddy  Desert Financial Arena (0)
Tempe, AZ
January 12, 2021*
6:00 pm, P12N 		UC Riverside W 67–62 OT 9–2
(3–1) 		 20 – E. Mobley   12 – I. Mobley   3 – Peterson  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
January 14, 2021
6:30 pm, P12N 		Washington W 95–68  10–2
(4–1) 		 18 – I. Mobley   7 – Peterson   4 – I. Mobley  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
January 16, 2021
6:30 pm, P12N 		Washington State W 85–77  11–2
(5–1) 		 21 – Eaddy   11 – Peterson   4 – 2 Tied  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
January 19, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN2 		at Oregon State
Originally Scheduled for 12/20/20 [b] 		L 56–58  11–3
(5–2) 		 12 – E. Mobley   13 – E. Mobley   4 – Anderson  Gill Coliseum (0)
Corvallis, OR
January 23, 2021
5:00 pm, P12N 		at California W 76–68  12–3
(6–2) 		 25 – E. Mobley   10 – I. Mobley   3 – 2 Tied  Haas Pavilion (0)
Berkeley, CA
January 28, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPNU 		Oregon State W 75–62  13–3
(7–2) 		 14 – E. Mobley   13 – E. Mobley   4 – Eaddy  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
February 2, 2021
6:00 pm, FS1 		at Stanford
Originally Scheduled for 12/13/20 [c] 		W 72–66  14–3
(8–2) 		 23 – E. Mobley   11 – E. Mobley   3 – Peterson  Maples Pavilion (0)
Stanford, CA
February 6, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN 		No. 21 UCLA
Rivalry 		W 66–48  15–3
(9–2) 		 19 – Anderson   11 – I. Mobley   3 – E. Mobley  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
February 11, 2021
7:00 pm, P12N 		No. 20 at Washington W 69–54  16–3
(10–2) 		 17 – E. Mobley   12 – I. Mobley   4 – 2 Tied  Alaska Airlines Arena (0)
Seattle, WA
February 13, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPNU 		No. 20 at Washington State W 76–65  17–3
(11–2) 		 29 – Eaddy   11 – E. Mobley   5 – Anderson  Beasley Coliseum (0)
Pullman, WA
February 17, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 17 Arizona State W 89–71  18–3
(12–2) 		 22 – E. Mobley   12 – I. Mobley   7 – E. Mobley  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
February 20, 2021
3:00 pm, FOX 		No. 17 Arizona L 72–81  18–4
(12–3) 		 23 – E. Mobley   7 – I. Mobley   7 – Anderson  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
February 22, 2021
6:00 pm, FS1 		No. 19 Oregon
Originally Scheduled for 1/30/21 		W 72–58  19–4
(13–3) 		 24 – T. Eaddy   11 – D. Peterson   8 – E. Anderson  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
February 25, 2021
6:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 19 at Colorado L 62–80  19–5
(13–4) 		 13 – 2 Tied   5 – 4 Tied   2 – 3 Tied  CU Events Center (98)
Boulder, CO
February 27, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 19 at Utah L 61–71  19–6
(13–5) 		 19 – Peterson   10 – I. Mobley   2 – 3 Tied  Jon M. Huntsman Center (0)
Salt Lake City, UT
March 3, 2021
7:30 pm, FS1 		Stanford
Originally Scheduled for 1/21/21 		W 79–42  20–6
(14–5) 		 16 – Eaddy   9 – Peterson   6 – Peterson  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
March 6, 2021
1:00 pm, CBS 		at UCLA
Rivalry 		W 64–63  21–6
(15–5) 		 13 – E. Mobley   11 – E. Mobley   4 – Anderson  Pauley Pavilion (0)
Los Angeles, CA
Pac-12 Tournament
March 11, 2021
5:30 pm, P12N 		(2) No. 24 vs. (7) Utah
Quarterfinals 		W 91–85 2OT 22–6
  26 – E. Mobley   9 – E. Mobley   3 – Peterson  T-Mobile Arena (0)
Paradise, NV
March 12, 2021
8:30 pm, ESPN 		(2) No. 24 vs. (3) No. 23 Colorado
Semifinals 		L 70–72  22–7
  26 – E. Mobley   9 – E. Mobley   5 – Eaddy  T-Mobile Arena (0)
Paradise, NV
NCAA tournament
March 20, 2021
1:30 pm, TNT 		(6 W) No. 23 vs. (11 W) Drake
First Round 		W 72–56  23–7
  17 – E. Mobley   11 – E. Mobley   10 – Eaddy  Bankers Life Fieldhouse (2,163)
Indianapolis, IN
March 22, 2021
6:40 pm, CBS 		(6 W) No. 23 vs. (3 W) No. 12 Kansas
Second Round 		W 85–51  24–7
  17 – I. Mobley   13 – E. Mobley   5 – E. Mobley  Hinkle Fieldhouse (1,927)
Indianapolis, IN
March 28, 2021
6:45 pm, TBS 		(6 W) No. 23 vs. (7 W) Oregon
Sweet Sixteen 		W 82–68  25–7
  22 – White   8 – E. Mobley   6 – E. Mobley  Bankers Life Fieldhouse (3,460)
Indianapolis, IN
March 30, 2021
4:15 pm, TBS 		(6 W) No. 23 vs. (1 W) No. 1 Gonzaga
Elite Eight 		L 66–85  25–8
  19 – I. Mobley   7 – I. Mobley   3 – I. Mobley  Lucas Oil Stadium (6,166)
Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Pacific Time.

[11]

Rankings

See also: 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516Final
AP Poll———————RVRVRVRV201719RV2423тNot released
Coaches Poll——^————RVRVRVRVRV2018182423239

Note: AP does not release post-tournament rankings
^ Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.

References

  1. ^ The Loyola Marymount-USC Trojans game had originally been scheduled for December 29, but was canceled due to COVID-19 related issues within the Loyola Marymount program. This game was added after USC past four games have either postponed or canceled as a result of positive COVID-19 test results within the USC program.
  2. ^ The USC Trojans-Oregon State game had originally been scheduled for December 20, but was postponed as a result of positive COVID-19 test results within the USC program.
  3. ^ The Stanford-USC Trojans game had originally been scheduled for December 13, but was postponed as a result of positive COVID-19 test results within the USC program.
  1. ^ "2020-21 Men's Basketball Players of the Week". Pac-12.com. Archived from the original on March 25, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  2. ^ "Media selects preseason 2020-21 Pac-12 Men's Basketball All-Conference Teams". Pac-12.com. Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  3. ^ "Evan Mobley Named To the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watch List". USC Athletics. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  4. ^ "Evan Mobley Named To Wooden Award Midseason Watch List". USC Athletics. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  5. ^ "Evan Mobley Named To NABC Player Of The Year Watch List". USC Athletics. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
  6. ^ "Evan Mobley Named To Naismith Trophy Watch List". USC Athletics. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
  7. ^ "Naismith Player of the Week". Twitter. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  8. ^ "USC Freshman Evan Mobley Named to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Watch List". USC Athletics. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  9. ^ NCAA March Madness [@marchmadness] (February 8, 2021). "🏆 Weekly Honors! 🏆 Team of the Week: @StJohnsBBall Player of the Week: @evan_mobley7" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. ^ a b "USC Men's Basketball Team Activities Remain Paused; Next Three Games Canceled/Postponed". usctrojans.com. December 15, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
  11. ^ "2020-21 Men's Basketball Schedule". USC Athletics. Retrieved November 29, 2020.