UCLA and USC will meet for the first time as Big Ten Conference teams on Monday when UCLA visits Southern California.
After struggling through a four-game losing streak, UCLA (14-6, 5-4 Big Ten) has bounced back with three straight wins. The Bruins followed an 85-83 win over No. 18 Wisconsin at home on Tuesday with a 65-60 victory against Washington in Seattle on Saturday.
Big man Aday Mara had another strong performance off the bench, following his career-high 22 points against Wisconsin with 12 points and seven rebounds at Washington.
“What he’s doing in these last couple of games is what he does every day in practice,” teammate Dylan Andrews said. “Aday is a monster, and I’m glad people are starting to see that.”
Andrews has also stepped up his game. UCLA coach Mick Cronin had challenged Andrews, the team’s leading scorer last season, and Andrews has responded with 13 points against Iowa, 10 points and seven assists against Wisconsin, and nine points, including a crucial 3-pointer late in the game at Washington.
Andrews is part of a backcourt that also includes veteran Kobe Johnson, who played for USC for the last three seasons. Johnson returns to the Galen Center for the first time since transferring, but the Trojans’ team he faces is much different than the one he played for.
USC (12-7, 4-4) has undergone major changes in its first season under coach Eric Musselman. Guard Desmond Claude, the Trojans’ leading scorer at 16.3 points per game, is leading the charge.
Claude helped USC secure a 78-73 win at Nebraska on Wednesday, scoring 21 points. He has scored at least 21 points in three of the last four games, all wins for USC. He scored nine points in the one loss.
USC thrives when Claude is distributing the ball, as Musselman pointed out after the Nebraska win.
“The biggest thing with Desmond is that he had zero assists going into halftime, and it was super important for him to understand that the defense was loading up on him and he was going to have to really trust his teammates,” Musselman said. “He did that. He ended up getting six assists in the second half.”
Claude’s 4.2 assists, along with Saint Thomas’ 4.1 assists per game, help drive a USC offense that is 12-0 when scoring at least 75 points this season and 0-7 when failing to reach that mark.
