Harold Miner will not be honored at halftime of the Feb. 24 game against California because USC coaches have been unable to get a hold of the school's all-time leading scorer. Instead, former Trojans player and coach Bob Boyd -- who has been introducing many of the honorees -- will himself be honored. USC has been honoring a former player at every home game since Pac-10 play began. Coach Floyd said Miner would be done some time next year. He wouldn't say if Miner's jersey would be retired like those of Bill Sharman and Paul Westphal earlier this season.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (34)

Daniel Hackett was forced to watch practice from sideline seats as punishment for missing a study hall. Coach Floyd said that would be the extent of the discipline.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:47 PM | Permalink

Lod said that he has also felt sick since coming back from the Bay Area, though he has been able to practice. He said he felt a little better today.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:37 PM | Permalink

``I'm just real weak right now, like my body's just aching -- my stomach and lower back,'' Pruitt said after practice. ``... I should be (healthy) enough to play and contribute. We'll see what happens tomorrow.''

Pruitt said he spent four hours at the doctor yesterday and went through two bags of fluids.The doctor told him it was a virus of some sort.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:28 PM | Permalink

Gabe Pruitt, RouSean Cromwell and Reed Doucette were back at practice Wednesday after missing the previous day with an illness.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:41 PM | Permalink

``We're smart enough to know that we're not 45 points better than Oregon State, and we're not going to beat them by 45, nor 35, nor 25, nor 15,'' coach Floyd said of Thursday's game against the Beavers, who USC beat 91-46 on the road at the beginning of the month. ``... They're not as bad as they played that night and we aren't that good. We made every shot, 65 percent, where we know we're not going to shoot 65 percent Thursday night. And I know that they're going to come out here with a lot of pride after getting beaten the way they were beaten.''

Well, it's certainly unreasonable to expect another 45-point victory. But to say USC won't beat a team that it beat by 45 points on the road by 15 at home? Seems rather pessimistic. What do you guys think? Will USC beat Oregon State by more or less than 15?

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Floyd said he would be thrilled to go 6-3 through the second half of Pac-10 play like USC did in the first half.

``Absolutely, I'll take that right now,'' Floyd said. ``... I think any coach would in this league. We're going to say the right things, that we're trying to win them all. And we are, we're trying to win them all. But (the conference) is just too strong.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 6:47 PM | Permalink

Floyd liked the way RouSean Cromwell played off the bench against Cal, though his numbers were modest with two points, one rebound, two steals and a block in 15 minutes.

``His activity was great,'' Floyd said. ``He played like a guy who sitting on the bench had bothered him. ... I thought our defense was better when he was out there.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 6:40 PM | Permalink

After allowing Cal to shoot 51.9 percent Saturday, the Trojans made defense the priority in Tuesday's practice. Stanford also shot 48.1 percent against USC on Thursday. On the season, the Trojans are tied for second-best in the country in field-goal percentage allowed at 36.6 percent.

``That's all we did today was guard,'' Floyd said. ``We got to get back to guarding people. Stanford got a lot of easy pick-ups on post defense, and (Cal) was perimiter. We didn't locate the final 10 minutes.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 6:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Being a computer-phobe, coach Floyd still hasn't seen video of Mayo's incident. His only knowledge of Mayo's ejection and the surrounding circus seems to be what we (the media) have told him. He said he hasn't talked to Mayo, and that he trusts Mayo and his high school coach to work through the situation.

``He's a visible athlete,'' Floyd said. ``I'm sure there will be a lot of chapters written through the years like there are with all great players. He's a young guy. He's going to have a myriad of experiences. With his coach, O.J. can handle this experience for sure. He'll grow from it because he's a very bright guy.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 6:01 PM | Permalink

Gabe Pruitt missed practice with a stomach virus, according to coach Floyd. RouSean Cromwell left midway through practice feeling similar effects. Walk-on Reed Doucette also was stricken and not in attendance.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:49 PM | Permalink

In another twist in the O.J. Mayo incident, the USC commitment has gone to court and gotten a temporary restraining order against the West Virginia Schools Activities Commission to stop the enforcement of his two-game suspension, according to this USA Today article.

Mayo is cleared to play in every game through Feb. 9 while the court reviews the case, including tonight's national showdown against Artesia of Lakewood at Duke University. It looks like we will see a matchup between Mayo and 2008 USC oral commitment Malik Story after all.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 1:14 PM | Permalink

Here's a consolidation of the latest information on USC commitment O.J. Mayo, who was ejected from his Huntington High (W.Va.) game Friday for getting two technical fouls and may receive further punishment for bumping a referee.

Here's a Charleston Gazette story on how Mayo will be ineligible to play in his team's next two games because of the ejection.

A news station in West Virginia, has video of the incident. Go to the page and click on "OJ Stays home" to view the video. From the clip, it appears that, after a slam dunk, Mayo gets his first techinical for taunting. He's upset with that call but ultimately walks away to calm down, then walks back by the opposing team's players without saying a word and gets called for another technical. Mayo then chases the ref to the scorer's table and appears to give him a slight bump from behind. The ref goes sprawling to the floor.

The news station has an update today that Mayo is considering taking legal action.

The Charleston newspaper wrote in today's edition that Mayo won't be the only Huntingon player to miss two games. Five of the team's reserves were suspended for leaving the bench during the ruckus.

The immediate aftermath of the incident is Mayo will miss Tuesday's national showdown with Southern California's own Artesia High at Duke University. Artesia has Malik Story, who has given an oral commitment to USC for 2008. Without Mayo, Huntington's 15-0 record and top national ranking will be in jeopardy.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (41)

Coach Floyd decided the team would not practice today, though the players did do an hour in the weight room.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:10 PM | Permalink

Lodrick Stewart said that he and his twin brother often talk about how it would have been if Rodrick had stayed at USC. Rodrick transferred to Kansas after his freshman season. He is a little-used reserve on the Jayhawks, averaging less than a point a game. Lodrick had signed release papers after his sophomore year but opted to stay at USC when he heard Tim Floyd was coming in as the new coach. He is second on the team with an average of 13.8 points as a senior.

Rodrick could have been a big contributor on the Trojans at the beginning of this season when USC was in need of a point guard because of the death of Ryan Francis and the academic ineligibility of Gabe Pruitt.

``We talk about it all the time,'' Lodrick said. ``He'll say, `Man, what if I just would have stayed.' ''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:10 PM | Permalink

Cal shot 51.9 percent, the first time this season a team has hit 50 percent of its field goals against the Trojans.

``As a coach, it's always a concern when you shoot 58.7 percent and win by three,'' Floyd said. ``That's a sign that other things are not exactly right out there. Those are things we'll try to address before going into next weekend.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 1:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Cal guard Ayinde Ubaka only played 26 minutes because of dehydration, according to Cal coach Ben Braun, and received fluids during the game. Ubaka, the Bears' second-leading scorer at 13.8 ppg, had nine points on just five shots against the Trojans.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 1:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (27)

Taj Gibson said Taylor Harrison was a former teammate of his back on an AAU team, and that he would never throw a punch at him. He was trying to back him up after Harrison had given him a bit of an elbow. He threw out his hand without looking and accidentally connected with Harrison's face.

``I was extremely happy when they didn't kick me from the game because I had no intention to hit him in the face,'' Gibson said. ``I was worried because I was shocked when (Cal players/coaches) were saying I tried to hit him.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 1:33 AM | Permalink

I was on the same flight as the team on the way back to L.A. Group A, including most of the team, had already boarded the Southwest flight when I got to the gate. Stuck in Group B with me were a couple walk-ons and freshman Kyle Austin. Hmmm, didn't seem too random.

At the end of the flight while we were waiting for them to open the doors, someone pushed one of those pens that plays the USC fight song. I never saw where it came from but the players got a kick out of it.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 1:20 AM | Permalink

Coach Floyd singled out Daniel Hackett for what he called four great plays down the stretch -- the cut and layup off a pass from Lodrick Stewart, the defensive rebound with 1:06 left and the free throws that followed, and the game-winning points on his drive and layup. Floyd also liked Stewart's unselfishness in the second half, recognizing he was getting more defensive attention after his early hot shooting and passing around to the open man instead of forcing shots up.

``It could have been a devastating loss with that kind of a lead,'' Floyd said. ``It could have been a self-doubt loss. Instead, it's a great win.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 6:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Omar Wilkes missed everything on a desperation 3-pointer and the Trojans hold on for a 76-73 victory. More from the locker room soon ...

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Ryan Anderson missed a pretty open straight-away 3-point attempt and Nick Young came down with the rebound and was fouled. Young missed the front-end but made the second free throw, putting USC up by 3 with 3.5 seconds left.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Daniel Hackett took a pass from Pruitt at the 3-point line and made an aggressive, slashing drive to the basket for a layup to put USC up 75-73 with 16 seconds left.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 5:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Theo Robertson hit Cal's fourth 3-pointer in the last five minutes or so to tie the game at 71-71. None of these 3-pointers are even touching the rim. 1:27 left to go, Cal with the ball ...

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:57 PM | Permalink

Ryan Anderson hit a 3-pointer from five feet behind the line with the shot clock winding down to cut the SC lead to four. 6-foot-10 players aren't supposed to be able to do that. Nick Young answered with a 3-point play, but Omar Wilkes drained a 3 for Cal. Following two free throws from Gibson, Wilkes hit another 3 from the same spot just left of the top of the key. Then the Bears got a steal and a layup from Alex Pribble. It's a one-point game, SC 69 and Cal 68.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:47 PM | Permalink

seems ok

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:43 PM | Permalink

Stewart still has his confidence. Just when USC needed a big shot with the lead down to 7, he drilled a 3-pointer for his first points of the second half. USC up 62-52.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:39 PM | Permalink

Cal is making a run behind Ryan Anderson but hasn't gotten the deficit under 10 because of Young, who answered with a short jumper and a drive and layup. Lewis also hit a jumper. SC up 59-49. Gibson back in with 9:30 to go.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:35 PM | Permalink

Stewart finally took his first shot of the second half 7:30 in and the 3-point attempt rimmed out.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:31 PM | Permalink

Daniel Hackett appeared to twist his ankle while on defense. He left the game but was walking pretty well off the court. It looks like he'll be OK.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:28 PM | Permalink

Taj picked up an offensive foul with 16:54 remaining and leaves the game. However, USC has a 48-34 cushion to work with while he's out. Pruitt has two 3-pointers and Nick Young five points so far in the second half. Strangely, Stewart hasn't taken a shot.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:17 PM | Permalink

Daniel Hackett went flying into the Cal bench trying to save the ball from going out of bounds. The Cal players didn't stand up to catch him and he tipped over them before they held him up by his legs. Hackett keeps touching his lip but he seems ok.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:13 PM | Permalink

instead of Lewis. Lewis has three fouls

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 4:12 PM | Permalink

It's the Lodrick Show here at Haas. Stewart has 18 of USC's 37 points. He's in one of those zones where he doesn't miss, similar to the Oregon State game. His career high is 28 points in that Oregon State game. We'll see if he can beat that in the second half.

Nick Young didn't score his first two points until he hit free throws with 9.4 seconds remaining. He's 0 for 4 from the field. Another thing to keep an eye on in the second half is Taj Gibson's foul situation. The Trojans need him for his defense on Ryan Anderson. A fourth foul early could spell trouble ...

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:55 PM | Permalink

Cal's Ayinde Ubaka drove right to the basket for a layup over N'diaye at the buzzer.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:54 PM | Permalink

with 38.5 seconds left in the half.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:50 PM | Permalink

Freshman forward Kyle Austin is in the game along with Cromwell. Abdoulaye N'diaye must be in the doghouse.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:46 PM | Permalink

Lod got a loose ball while losing his balance near the sideline and threw it off Cal's Ayinde Ubaka, who was lying on the ground. The ball hit Ubaka high, either in the shoulder or the face, and went out of bounds. It looked like Lod could have gotten the ball to a teammate instead of going off Ubaka, but there were not malicious intentions on Lod's part.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:42 PM | Permalink

Lod hit a jumper, Gabe hit a 3, Lod got a steal and a layup and then Lod hit another 3 to put USC up 28-22. Lod now with 15 points with five minutes to go in the half.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:39 PM | Permalink

Stewart has 10 points with two 3-pointers. That's more than twice his scoring from Thursday's game. Game tied at 20.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:36 PM | Permalink

at 18-17 on a basket by Hackett.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:33 PM | Permalink

After fouling Taylor Harrison inside, Taj Gibson got a technical foul right after the play ended. It was a strange play. Gibson seemed to throw out a closed fist that struck Harrison in the face. But Gibson was looking the other direction when he did it, and the blow didn't land hard. The refs didn't seem to see the play clearly. Gibson is lucky he wasn't booted from the game.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:28 PM | Permalink

Cal's leading scorer just picked up his second foul with 10 minutes remaining in the half and left the game. Big break for USC.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:26 PM | Permalink

on consecutive possessions trying to get to the basket. SC down 15-13.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:23 PM | Permalink

After starting up 9-4, sloppy passing helped Cal go on an 11-2 run and take a 15-11 lead.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:17 PM | Permalink

In the ever-changing No. 4 spot. Not surprising given his aggressiveness going to the basket against Stanford.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:14 PM | Permalink

Cal gets the tip

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Put any questions in comment form and I will try to edit your comment with an answer. We'll see how this works ...

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 3:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

According to the Fresno Bee: http://www.fresnobee.com/336/story/26302.html

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 2:59 PM | Permalink

In the locker room following last Saturday's win over Arizona State, it was difficult to miss the 7-foot-1 Yao Ming-lookalike mingling with the players. The recruit was Max Zhang, a Chinese player who is looking to attend college in the United States. Zhang, whose birth name is Zhang Zhaoxu, said USC was the first school he had visited. He got coaching from Yao at the NBA-sponsored Basketball without Borders Asia instructional camp in 2005.

Zhang was still on campus Monday and played a two-on-two pick-up game with USC walk-ons after practice. He looked like a raw player years away from being able to play at a program like SC. Going up against the 6-foot-6 Reed Doucette, Zhang didn't take advantage of his size on offense and his height was negated by his slow foot speed on defense. He seemed more comfortable shooting from the 3-point line. Still, Doucette came away in awe of Zhang's size and the potential that comes with it.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 10:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Coach Floyd still sees Washington as an NCAA Tournament team. The Huskies, once a ranked team, started off 1-6 in Pac-10 play before upsetting No. 7 Oregon on Thursday.

``I'm going to tell you all this, Washington is going to be in the mix when this thing's all over and done,'' Floyd said. ``They are a result of the schedule they've played. They're going to have an opportunity to get their head up and they're going to be a factor, maybe not in this league but in the NCAA Tournament. ... Don't be shocked if they rattle off five or six games in a row.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 10:36 PM | Permalink

Nick Young wore a New York Mets hat around the team hotel Friday. So, what is a guy who has lived in Los Angeles his whole life doing with a Mets hat? It's not that Young likes the baseball team. He wears the hat because the NY on the front matches his initials.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 9:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Coach Floyd was a bit short with the media after Thursday's loss but was in a better mood Friday. He chatted us up about subjects ranging from his disastrous time with the Chicago Bulls to his aversion to computers. Don't expect to have Floyd ever read anything on this blog. He doesn't go on the Internet and said that, though he has a USC e-mail account, he has never used e-mail in his life.

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 9:06 PM | Permalink

After having 19 shots blocked by Stanford on Thursday, USC emphasized passing to the open man off of drives to the basket rather than forcing up shots during practice Friday.

``I don't think our kids did not play hard,'' Tim Floyd said. ``We competed. I just thought we could play smarter.''

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 8:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

We’re starting a separate blog for USC basketball, another sign that we think interest in the program is growing.

My plan is to make this a place USC fans will want to visit multiple times a day to get an inside look at the team that can’t be found elsewhere, similar to Scott’s blog on football.

I will be posting daily updates from practice as well as links to anything interesting I read about the Trojans. Practices usually end about 5 p.m., so I’ll often have the latest from Galen Center between 5 and 6. But I’ll be making posts whenever I think, see or hear about anything I think will interest you. That could even be late at night, since I’m a bit of a night owl.

I’ll give you my take on games and will provide extra analysis for games like Saturday’s that are on the road and not on television.

I want to make this more interactive than most blogs and will have a place for you to ask questions. Making comments requires a free one-time registration, but if you are registered for Scott’s blog then you already will be ready to go here.

So I hope you will bookmark this site and come on by often.I see this becoming more of an SC hoops community than my own blog.

Matthew Kredell
Los Angeles Daily News

Posted by Matthew Kredell at 8:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)