Men's Basketball Power USC Makes First Visit to Liacouras Center Saturday

Saturday, November 13

Philadelphia, Pa.

7:00 P.M.

Temple University

USC

Photo by: Zamani Feelings

Men's Basketball Power USC Makes First Visit to Liacouras Center Saturday

11.11.21 | Men's Basketball

Buy Tickets Game Notes

PHILADELPHIA - Fresh off a season-opening win over Maryland Eastern Shore Wednesday, Temple will host USC (1-0), a team that advanced to the 2021 NCAA Elite Eight and is currently receiving votes in the national polls on Saturday night (7 pm/ESPN+/1210 AM WPHT).

Promotions
> Frisbee dogs will perform at halftime
> One randomly selected student will have the chance to compete in the series shootout to win $10,000

Scouting Temple

> Temple opened its season Wednesday with a 72-49 win over visiting Maryland Eastern Shore.
> The Owls return four starters from last season, and it was no surprise that their top two scorers led the way against the Hawks.
> Khalif Battle, who averaged 15 ppg last year, topped all scorers with 22 points while pulling down six rebounds. Damian Dunn, who scored at a 13.5 ppg in '20-21, also averaged double figure points in 2020-21, also reached double figures with 18 with Tai Strickland coming off the bench for 10 points, his best outing as an Owl.
> True freshman Zach Hicks was impressive in his debut with nine points on three-of-six shooting from long range while also blocking two shots.
> Nick Jourdain came off the bench to pull down a game and career high nine rebounds while Jeremiah Williams (7 pts) added a game-high four assists.
> Sage Tolbert III, who played in only the season finale last year while recovering from injury, made his first start.

Scouting USC

> The Trojans return six of their top eight scorers from the 2020-21 team which went 25-8, finished second in the Pac-12 by percentage points and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.
> Gone from that team are leading scorers Evan Mobley (NBA) and Tahj Eaddy (graduated), but back are forwards Isaiah Mobley, Chevez Goodwin and Max Agbonkpolo and guards Ethan Anderson, Drew Peterson and Isaiah White, almost all logging over 500 minutes of action last season.
> In all, 11 players return, and the Trojans have added transfer guard Boogie Ellis, the AAC Co-Sixth Man of the Year and three new freshmen, including California Gatorade Player of the Year guard Malik Thomas.
> Picked to finish third in the Pac-12, USC opened its season on Nov. 9 with a resounding 89-49 home win over Cal State Northridge.
> Andy Enfield is in his ninth season at USC and has an 158-110 record at the school. (4th-most wins in school history). Formerly at Florida Gulf Coast, he is one win shy of 200 (199-138) in 10 seasons as a head coach.

Series History vs. USC

> This is the ninth meeting between the teams and the return game of a home-and-home series that started with Temple's 70-61 win in Los Angeles on Nov. 22, 2019.
> The teams played a series of games in Philadelphia in the late 30s, early 40s with USC, starting the season after the Owls won the 1938 NIT. That first game was a 46-34 Trojan win on Dec. 26, 1938. USC won four of the five meetings in the stretch with its other win occurring on Dec. 29, 1969, when the 12th-ranked Trojans defeated the Owls, 68-53, at the Far West Classic in Portland, Ore.
> The only other meeting was the Owls' 1994-95 season opener, a 65-54 Temple win on Nov. 27 at the Martin Luther King Classic in Memphis.
> USC owns a 5-3 lead in the series.