Yesterday’s news on Wayne Carlander making the Pac-12 Hall of Honor reminded me how long it’s been since the Trojans won the conference title (1985). USC actually played two conference games at Cal State Dominguez Hills that season because the Sports Arena hosted Disney On Ice.
USC played Illinois State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Tulsa. What do I remember from that game? After losing 58-55, most of the Trojans stayed up all night playing cards in the team hotel before catching an early morning flight back to L.A.
Mr. Jenkins’s lasting memory of that season was the final Pac-10 game at the Sports Arena vs. Ralph Miller-coached Oregon State. Our favorite player Larry Friend missed two free throws at the end which would have won the game and clinched the conference title outright; instead the Trojans shared the title with Washington. Recalling it, time for a drink.