February 2011 Archives

• As the heaviest back in the group, Bradford showed that his strength is not without speed and agility. He ran a swift 4.56 40-yard dash, which was faster than 18 of his counterparts (more than half of the RB field). Despite the freakishly good mark, Bradford said afterward that he will try to improve his time at USC's pro day on March 30. In a league where the emergence of big, young backs such as Peyton Hillis and LeGarrette Blount have found success with similar attributes, Bradford definitely boosted his stock after yesterday's drills.

• Despite having his day cut short due to a hamstring tweak, Ronald Johnson his 4.46 40-yard dash time tied him for 9th among the wide receivers group. Without participating in a majority of the events, RoJo will have to prove himself at USC's pro day.

• Jordan Cameron, who was largely an unknown quantity coming into the combine, made a lot of "money" with his on-field performance. NFL.com listed him as a top performer in six events (40-yard dash, broad jump, vertical jump, 3-cone drill, 20-yard shuttle, 60-yard shuttle), placing him among the top TE talents in this year's draft.
• RB Allen Bradford took many by surprise when he weighed in at 242 pounds (having seen him up close though, it's basically all muscle), but he lived up to his nickname as the "monster" by unleashing 28 reps on the bench. That mark was better than three-fifths of this year's offensive lineman at the same event.
  
• Ronald Johnson is one of the many talented receivers in this year's draft who is out on the field today. Check out this video from his press conference earlier this week.
• After an impressive 31 reps on the bench on Friday, Kristofer O'Dowd tied for the highest OL vertical leap at 32.5 inches. Scouts have been skeptical about O'Dowd's knee problems, so a high vert could help quell some of those criticisms.

USC ran its winning streak to four games with a 62-46 win vs. Arizona State today at the Galen Center.  The Trojans are now 17-12 and beginning to entertain toughts of making the NCAA Tournament.

Seniors Alex Stepheson and Donte Smith were a big part of USC improving to 14-1 in its last 15 Senior Days.  Stepheson had 15 points and 10 rebounds for his 10th double-double of the season and Smith scored 12 points, making three three-pointers and moving to 17th on USC's all-time three-point baskets made list.

USC will close out the regular season on the road at the Washington schools this week before returning home for the Pac-10 Tournament at Staples Center, March 9-12.

• Here's a video spotlight of Kristofer O'Dowd, who knocked out a beastly 31 reps on the bench press yesterday.
• Fellow offensive lineman and projected first round prospect Tyron Smith notched 29 reps on the bench, however the weight he was carrying around coming into the Combine made the most waves. Smith added almost 30 pounds of "healthy" weight (a.k.a. not the kind you find at the drive-thru) since his USC departure by changing up his diet.
• Jordan Cameron, whose upside potential has many scouts closely eyeing the TE's performance this week, had an impressive showing on the field, "catching just about everything thrown (his) way" (scroll to the bottom to read the notes) and tied for the fifth best bench press mark among tight ends with 23.

• Nikola Vucevic was better than the Pac-10's best says CBSSports.com's Gary Parrish.
• Baxter Holmes breaks down the mind games.
  
• Michael Lev wonders if Kevin O'Neill got in Derrick Williams' head during the week.
• Pedro Moura looks at the momentum building for this men's hoops team.
• Scott Wolf compiled some great post-game quotes.
• Neon Tommy recognized the unheralded performance put in by Alex Stepheson.
• In other news, former USC assistant SID Gary Pine was named the athletic director at Azusa Pacific.
• Speaking of ADs, Pat Haden was on Robert Wuhl's radio show. 
  HadenAndWuhl.mp3
• Finally, here's a pic from the LA Sports Award as Jovan Vavic and the men's water polo team earned the best USC moment of 2010.

• Derrick Williams and Lamont Jones combined to make 12/12 shots in beating the Trojans in Tuscon earlier this season.  Tonight, they were held to 6/23 as a pair.  Instead, USC's inside-outside tandem Nikola Vucevic and Jio Fontan controlled the game with 46 points as a duo.  "Nik's level is raising up," head coach Kevin O'Neill said.  "It gives us somebody we can always go to."  As for Fontan, he is far more comfortable and aggressive since becoming the starting point guard.  "It's starting to come back together," Fontan said about his game.  "Lately, I've wanted to be more positive with myself...sitting back and thinking how blessed I am to be a Trojan."

• The Trojans' defense forced Arizona to shoot 36% from the field and an ugly two assists to 11 turnovers.  Of course, Marcus Simmons was at the center of the strategy, including an epic block in the final two minutes.  "He is the best one-on-one defender in the whole country," O'Neill said about Simmons.  "Marcus did a great job of slowing [Jones] down and changing the game for us."

• The 2010-11 Trojans have earned a reputation as giant killers.  After early season wins against Texas, Tennessee and UCLA, USC notched a top 10 victory against the Pac-10's best tonight.  "We just play the people in the jerseys," said O'Neill, who called it the most complete win of the season.  "We hung in there and played with poise and confidence down the stretch."  For one night at least, "poise and confidence" included impeccable free throw shooting (22/27) to seal the win.

• Blake Griffin and his Clippers' teammates Randy Foye and DeAndre Jordan took the game in from courtside.  The slam dunk champion spoke to the team in the post-game celebratory locker room (click for photo).  "I don't know what to say," said Griffin, who then found the words that all student-athletes love.  "You get tomorrow off!"

• With more NCAA news, Michael Lev has a topical interview with the NCAA's vice president of enforcement.
• Mark Sanchez is being honored by the USC Alumni Association.
  2011 Alumni Awards Mark Sanchez 02.16.11.doc
• Former USC women's head basketball coach Fred Williams is a releasing a jazz album.
• Trojan hoopster and triangle master Tex Winter is one of 12 finalists for the basketball hall of fame.
• DeMar DeRozan spoke out against "prop" dunk contests, link from Scott Wolf.
• The Trojan hoops team benefited from rest last week reports Baxter Holmes.
• The OC Register wonders if Arizona star Derrick Williams gets preferential treatment from the referees.
• Pedro Moura looks at Mo Jones' impact since moving to the bench.
  
• Matt Barkley made the Heisman watch list for 2011.
• NCAA president Mark Emmert says he does not know when the Trojans' appeal ruling will come.

• Basketball is a lot easier when you make shots.  The previous statement is as simple as it is true.  Against Oregon last Saturday, USC could not buy a bucket despite great looks at the hoop.  Tonight, they made 53% from the field and 57% from three.  "You look bad when you don't shoot well," Kevin O'Neill compared this week to last.  "Our shotmaking was good the last two games."
  

• The offensive execution and ball movement was pitch perfect against the Cardinal, which led to balanced scoring and pretty basketball.  While Alex Stepheson, Nikola Vucevic and Donte Smith cashed in for a combined 47 points, the point guards deserve credit for conducting this offensive symphony.  "You know who are really key in a lot of this are Mo and Jio," said O'Neill about Jones and Fontan, who combined for nine assists to just two turnovers.  "Jio's floor game tonight was incredible and Mo's aggressiveness to score is really helping our team."

• Jeremy Green will be happy to see Marcus Simmons leave town.  Stanford's leading scorer dropped 27 points on the Bruins Thursday, but "The Shadow" held him to 11 on 3/13 shooting and 0/4 from three.  "Marcus is a great single-minded defender," O'Neill described his stopper.  "We give him one assignment and he's going to die trying to do it."  Hear Simmons in his own words below...

• Suddenly, USC sits in a fourth place tie in the Pac-10 with a huge home game against likely top 10 foe Arizona looming Thursday.  We look forward to seeing you all at Galen this week for the final homestand of the season.

USC baseball's opening night will now be an opening day doubleheader Saturday at 10 a.m. at Dedeaux Field against Missouri.

Here is the new schedule of events for the USC Tournament:

Saturday

USC vs. Missouri at 10 a.m.

USC vs. Cal Poly at 2 p.m.

Sunday

Missouri vs. UNC at 10 a.m.

USC vs. North Carolina at 2 p.m.

Friday (February 18)

Cal Poly vs. Missouri - 10 a.m.

Cal Poly vs. North Carolina - 2 p.m.

USC vs. Missouri - 6 p.m.

Saturday (February 19)

USC vs. North Carolina - 7 p.m.

Sunday (February 20)

Cal Poly vs. North Carolina - 10 a.m.

USC vs. Cal Poly - 3 p.m.

If Saturday's game is rained out, USC and North Carolina would play at 3 p.m. on Sunday with USC and Cal Poly then playing at 7 p.m.

• USC was just 3-15 in their last 18 games at Haas Pavilion coming in, so they will gladly take a win.  "We found a way to get it done," captain Alex Stepheson said.  "We weathered the storm and got the win."  While it looked like a comfortable victory after Maurice Jones explosion held off the first Cal rally, a wild final two minutes, which featured two technical fouls (Donte Smith and Jorge Gutierrez), an intentional foul (Gutierrez), missed Trojan free throws and unconscious Bears shooting, made it a three-point margin at the end.

• When Cal beat USC at Galen Center, Nikola Vucevic and Stepheson were dominated by their big man counterparts Harper Kamp and Markhuri Sanders-Frison.  Tonight, they flipped the script.  Vucevic (21 points and 10 rebounds) and Stepheson (10 points and 11 rebounds) both had double-doubles.  "We just wanted to make it a special emphasis to get them back today," Stepheson admitted.

• For a six minute stretch in the second half, Maurice Jones put on a scintillating show, which stunned the Cal crowd and thwarted the Bears' charge.  After Cal had pulled within one after being down 11 at the half, Jones made back-to-back gorgeous lay-ups for his first scores of the night.  Then, he hit four consecutive threes to put the Trojans ahead for good.  "It was just one of those nights," said Jones, who finished with 22 points coming off the bench for the first time this season.  
  

• In an effort to save their legs and improve their Saturday performances, O'Neill and the team decided to cancel Friday's scheduled practice.  Instead, they will meet at the hotel and watch film.

• Tonight's men's basketball game at Cal will not be televised, but Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott has plans to rectify that in the future.  "When it comes to football and men's basketball we are going to commit to every game being broadcast," Scott said.  Here's the full story.
• Baxter Holmes reports that senior Donte Smith will replace freshman Maurice Jones in the starting lineup to inject a little more offense.
• Michael Lev ponders junior Nikola Vucevic's NBA future.
  
• In a story that might interest Trojan fans, the Bruins are looking for a temporary basketball home next season and they are considering the Sports Arena.
• USC baseball season is just one day away!  Pedro Moura previews the Frank Cruz era.
• ESPN named USC 1B/3B Ricky Oropesa a 1st-team All-American.
  
• On the football field, Ted Miller breaks down the Pac-12 South storylines heading into spring.
• The OC Register throws out some Pac-12 predictions.
• "A Better LA" is throwing a Changing the Game luncheon, which will feature emcee Pat Haden, founder Pete Carroll and others.  You are invited!
• Finally, this Kris O'Dowd interview was passed along to us. 
  

• On a random pop culture note, former USC WR Grant Mattos will be part of the next Survivor cast.
• As spring practice approaches, LB Devon Kennard is still recovering from hip surgery, according to the OC Register.
• Michael Lev continues his depth chart breakdown with a look at the linebacker spots.
• Scott Wolf predicts USC's starting offensive line next season featuring two freshmen.
• Pedro Moura takes a look at the Trojans' quarterbacks and running backs.
• Ted Miller sizes up where each Pac-12 team sits at the quarterback position this offseason.
• The Pac-10 blogger also ranked Jurrell Casey as the 24th best player in the conference this past season.
• USC women's tennis star Maria Sanchez has risen to #1 in the nation in the latest ITA rankings.  Sanchez won the ITA National Indoor Singles championship last fall and is currently on a 15-match singles winning streak.

• Nik and nothing...  Vucevic accounted for 22 points on 11/22 shooting, while the rest of the team made just 10/35 combined from the floor.  "You are obviously not going to win many games shooting the ball like we did," Kevin O'Neill said.  "You are not going to win many games scoring 50 at home.  That's all you can say about that."

• The symbolic moment of the night came after a first half timeout when Oregon head coach Dana Altman made a complete line change, subbing all five of his players at once.  When O'Neill saw that, he thought to himself, "Oh boy, here they come," he said after the game.  While the coach refused to use depth or fatigue as an excuse, he acknowledged that the Ducks were clearly trying to wear the Trojans seven man rotation down.  "They knew what they wanted to do and they did it," O'Neill said.

• At 13-12 overall and 5-7 in conference, O'Neill is hardly throwing in the towel.  USC has six games to play plus the Pac-10 conference tournament and the head coach expects his team to bring max effort.  "We keep doing our job," O'Neill stated the plan.  "We're all disappointed.  We're not going to be discouraged."

• Kevin O'Neill talked glowingly after practice about the work Donte Smith put in during the offseason to make himself a better shooter and all-around player.  If Maurice Jones is going to live up to his considerable potential, O'Neill wants to see the same work ethic from his freshman point guard.  "The effectiveness of his game will go up 50% if he becomes a 40% three-point shooter," O'Neill said.  "If he does not become a gym rat, he won't be able to do that."

• There is no greater motivating weapon for a coach than the bench, but with the lack of depth, that tool has been taken away from O'Neill.  With a big recruiting class on the way next season, he is excited to get it back.  "What I am looking forward to more than anything is having the luxury of benching people next season if they are not playing well," he said.  "It will help them as players if they become more responsible, more accountable if you can be put on the bench."

• Playing just seven men, USC has been susceptible in the second game of two-game sets this season.  "We have not played particularly well in Saturday games after Thursdays," O'Neill admitted.  "We are going to need a little extra oomph to get over the hump against Oregon."  The Ducks troubled the Trojans with their sized down lineup in Eugene, so look for a little more Garrett Jackson tomorrow.

• The first 1,000 students at Saturday's 7:30 p.m. game will receive FREE Trojan Fever wristbands.  Students in FREE with ID as always!
  

• "That was interesting," Kevin O'Neill exhaled as he sat down for his post-game presser.  The head coach is never one to complain about victories and he was not about to start tonight.  "We'll take the win," O'Neill said resolutely.  While it was not often pretty basketball, the Trojans held the Beavers to 24 points less than their previous meeting in Corvallis.  "We shrunk it up a little more," said O'Neill about adjustments.  "We were just sharper defensively."

• Jio Fontan has consistently asserted himself as the leader of this team off the court, but he has not always brought that aggression to the game itself.  "My team benefits more when I am aggressive," Fontan admitted after the win.  "Today wasn't a crazy night as far as stats go, but I think just being aggressive opened a lot of things up and put pressure on the defense."  His head coach was proud of the effort.  "He played great tonight," O'Neill praised.  "For him to play the way he did said a lot about him."

• The Trojans have struggled down the stretch this season largely because they are inefficient at the free throw line.  Tonight, they took care of business at the stripe and buried 17 of 21.  "We made the line," O'Neill pointed it out as a key to the victory.  Donte Smith made all four of his freebies plus two big second half threes.  "He's done it all season for us," O'Neill said of the senior.  "He's a guy that's been a major, major part of our team."

• The Women of Troy rallied from an 11-point deficit to win by 19 at Oregon State.  In the process, Ashley Corral became the 23rd player in USC women's basketball history to score 1,000 points in a career.

• As the NFL mock drafts start to come out, USC FB Stanley Havili is moving up, according to the National Football Post, which ranks him as the #31 overall prospect.  They have OT Tyron Smith slotted at #9.
• Gary Klein recapped USC's agent summit.
• Michael Lev places newcomer Soma Vainuku at the top of the fullback depth chart.
• Lev also discussed the possibility of incoming freshman Marqise Lee playing football and basketball as a Trojan.
• As we switch to hoops, Pedro Moura features the maturity of Nikola Vucevic.
• ESPNLA.com comes up with the keys to a USC victory over Oregon State tonight.
• In a basketball notebook, Scott Wolf assesses the state of the program.
• Baxter Holmes recognizes that USC's seven-man rotation is logging too many minutes.
• However, Holmes documents the positive progress USC has made under Kevin O'Neill compared to other programs that have faced NCAA sanctions.
• After winning their third straight national title, USC men's water polo added 15 new recruits.
• Jordan Culbreath, whose father Cliff played football at USC from 1968-72, is an Ivy League football player up for a courage award.  Please read his inspiring story and vote for him here!
  
• Coming off their Final Four run, the women's volleyball team made time for the kids at the Downtown YMCA. 
  

• The women's water polo team kicked off their 2011 campaign with big wins over UCLA and Hawaii at the Stanford Invitational.  The #2 Trojans lost an overtime final to #1 Stanford.
• Water polo freshman goalie Flora Bolonyai was named the MPSF Newcomer of the Week.
• #19 USC women's tennis has a big week ahead of them.  They will play host to three different opponents at Marks Stadium. 
  
• The #2 men's tennis squad looks to keep their undefeated campaign going against Pepperdine Friday afternoon at Marks Stadium starting at 1:30 p.m..
• USC baseball 1B Ricky Oropesa was named a first team preseason All-American by Baseball America.
• As we get closer to spring football practice, Michael Lev is starting to analyze the depth chart.  Here's his look at the running back crop.
• Gary Klein previewed the agent summit being hosted by USC at Galen Center today.  We'll have a post-meeting interview with AD Pat Haden this evening on the blog.
• Ted Miller looked back at his preseason prognostication for USC's football season and made some amends both good and bad.
• On the basketball front, Michael Lev feels Jio Fontan needs to be more aggressive offensively.
• Finally, our former STUDENT-athlete of the week Peter Yobo passed along these pictures from his latest trip to Ghana working for his non-profit iStandAbove.

• Before we get to recruiting, don't forget to kick your Super Bowl party off right by cheering the women's basketball team on to victory over the rival Bruins at 1:00 p.m. Sunday at Galen Center.
• USC's women's tennis program brought in the #1 recruiting class in the nation, according to the Tennis Recruiting Network.  The group is highlighted by Gabrielle DeSimone, who head coach Richard Gallien describes as "an Italian stallion" and compares her fire to Rafael Nadal.
• Scott Wolf recaps USC football's recruiting class and the Daily News breaks down the "reversal of fortune" between the Trojans and Bruins.
• Gary Klein looks at Lane Kiffin's National Signing Day accomplishments, plus the LA Times headlines USC "outclasses" UCLA.
• Michael Lev supplements his class overview with a few added notes.
• Pedro Moura takes a guess at the five incoming players who will have the most immediate impact.
• Ted Miller graded USC an "A" for the Class of 2011.
• Finally, our friends at CBS Sports put out a USC recruiting wrap video.  Check it out below...

• USC recruiting coordinator Ed Orgeron was named the Scout.com./Foxsports.com Recruiter of the Year.
  
• Wide receivers Marqise Lee and George Farmer won CIF titles in football and basketball at Serra high school in Gardena.  Lee has the athletic potential to pursue a two-sport career at USC if he is so inclined.  "We would welcome him," said head coach Kevin O'Neill, who has not scouted Lee, but is in need of depth.
• Farmer's father, George, played in the NFL for the Rams and Dolphins.
  
• Farmer and Lee continued the Serra pipeline, which includes Robert Woods and DaJohn Harris on the current roster.
• QB Max Wittek and WR Victor Blackwell are the latest Mater Dei alums to don the cardinal and gold joining current players QB Matt Barkley, DT Conrad Tavarez, WR Robbie Boyer and OL Khaled Holmes plus coaches Kennedy Pola and Lenny Vandermade.
• While Serra and Mater Dei are local, USC has done well in Florida recently at Lincoln high school.  Incoming RB "Buck" Allen prepped there as did USC defensive backs Jawanza Starling and T.J. Bryant.
• RB Amir Carlisle should be in peak physical condition considering his father has been the strength and conditioning coach of several professional sports organizations, including the Philadelphia Eagles and Tampa Bay Rays.
• Lamar Dawson will be just the second USC football letterman from the state of Kentucky joining Kurt Barber ('91).  Dawson led Boyle County high school to a 43-1 record in the last three years.
• Tre Madden is really Curtis Madden III.  His father played college ball at Kansas St., but his grandfather Lawrence McCutcheon was an NFL All-Pro running back.  The Trojan Family will know Daylon McCutcheon, Tre's uncle, who was a two-time All-Pac-10 corner at USC.
• OL Marcus Martin won the last two L.A. City championships with Crenshaw high school.
• DL J.R. Tavai threw discus and shot put for the Mira Costa track and field team.
• Greg Townsend's dad (sacking John Elway below) was a 4-time All-Pro with the Raiders.

• Nikola Vucevic and Alex Stepheson combined for 32 of USC's 50 points.  The Trojans' starting guards, Mo Jones and Jio Fontan, contributed just one basket between them in 68 minutes.  While USC's guards protected the ball nicely (5 team turnovers), they need more scoring against good teams.  "I have just got to get back into the groove," said Fontan, who went scoreless.  "We're just as good if not better than their guards, but they played a better game today."
  

• The Trojans won the first crosstown battle by dominating the glass, but they were outrebounded by 14 in this contest.  "We gave up too many second chances," Fontan bemoaned.  "You can't blame the bigs or the guards.  That's a team effort."  Kevin O'Neill and Fontan agreed that the turning point came early in the second half when the Trojans settled for jumpers, while UCLA continued to attack in the paint, which led to second chance points.
  

• UCLA was led by Josh Smith's 15 points, but they had six players contribute 7+ points, while USC had just three.  The Bruins are not easy to shut down because they get scoring from all five spots on the floor.  "They have really good talent.  Let's face it," Kevin O'Neill stated.  "They are a difficult guard for anybody."  O'Neill is realistic that his team's talent and depth is depleted after the NCAA sanctions led to two basically blank classes.  "We're not going to be able to recruit a whole team in one year."

• UCLA complained in the papers about USC's on-court celebration after the Trojans' win at Galen Center.  Tonight, they seemed to make a demonstrative point to enjoy the victory before the final buzzer.  "You play to win and when you win, you celebrate," said Fontan, who was not bothered at all by UCLA's high-fiving.

• USC practiced late night Monday in an effort to mimic Wednesday's primetime showdown at Pauley and restore their defensive intensity.  "That was a battle," Donte Smith said about yesterday's practice.  "I was tired afterwards."  While head coach Kevin O'Neill wants to see energy and fire against the Bruins, he has the bigger picture in mind as well.  "We have to establish an identity here in our program that we are going to play hard all the time," O'Neill said.  "If you don't play defense, you can't compete." 

• USC begins the second half of their Pac-10 schedule this week, which means teams are likely to adjust after the first meeting.  "I'm sure they are going to make some adjustments," O'Neill said.  At the end of each game's eve practice, the coaching staff goes over select game film with the players, which in this case featured a lot of the previous match-up at Galen Center.  "All players at any level, the only time they want to watch film is if it is about them," O'Neill joked that it is easier to get their attention and instruct.  "They will watch more if they are in it.  It's a coach's fact!"

• The Trojans have an opportunity to beat UCLA for the fifth straight time, which has not happened since 1943.  Since beating the Bruins at Galen Center, USC is just 2-4, while UCLA is 5-1.  "We're two teams headed in opposite directions, but that doesn't matter," said O'Neill, who is obviously expecting a battle at Pauley.  The Trojans have been critical of their own play of late.  Smith graded the team's play at a "D-" for the first half of the Pac-10, while Alex Stepheson called it a "D."  The Trojans will need to bring their D to leave Westwood with a W.

• USC athletic director Pat Haden challenged Alex Stepheson to a free throw shooting competition before practice.  The big man won a spirited battle by making three out of five from the stripe, while Haden dropped two of his freebies.  Here's Stepheson joking about the shootout and what it would mean to go undefeated versus UCLA in his career...

• Clay Matthews was the runner-up to Troy Polamalu for NFL Defensive Player of the Year, but he had a Rick Reilly column dedicated to his incredible journey.
• The OC Register sized up the match-up of Troy vs. Clay.
  
• The LA Times looks at art and sport in combination ahead of USC's "Artletics" exhibit, which debuts Thursday.
• In her new blog, former USCTrojans.com contributor Stephanie Graves put together a video on USC's outgoing senior class.
• Here are the OC Register's midseason awards for Pac-10 men's basketball.
• Pedro Moura attended last night's spirited late night practice as Kevin O'Neill tried to drill in defensive intensity.
• Ted Miller ranked the top football game atmospheres from the Pac-10 last season, including the Coliseum cardinal red out of Oregon, which was organized by the passionate Trojans fans.
• USC men's volleyball star Murphy Troy was named the MPSF Player of the Week for the second consecutive week.
• USC freshman tennis sensation Emilio Gomez was named Pac-10 Player of the Week after picking up three doubles and three singles points in last week's competition.