# 1978–79 USC Trojans men's basketball team

The 1978–79 USC Trojans men's basketball team represented the University of Southern California during the 1978–79 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by head coach Bob Boyd, they played their home games at the L. A. Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California as members of the Pac-10 Conference. The Trojans were 14–4 in the Pac-10 and finished second in the conference regular season standings behind UCLA. USC received a bid to the NCAA tournament, the school's fifth appearance all-time.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| Nov 30, 1978* | No. 12 | Houston | W 88–80 | 1–0 | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Dec 2, 1978* | No. 12 | Utah | W 70–56 | 2–0 | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Dec 6, 1978 | No. 11 | at Stanford | W 57–55 | 3–0 (1–0) | Maples Pavilion Stanford, California |
| Dec 13, 1978* | No. 12 | at No. 1 Duke | L 65–79 | 3–1 | Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham, North Carolina |
| Dec 15, 1978* | | vs. Xavier | L 68–75 | 3–2 | Stokely Athletic Center Knoxville, Tennessee |
| Dec 16, 1978* | | vs. Niagara | W 75–68 | 4–2 | Stokely Athletic Center Knoxville, Tennessee |
| Dec 21, 1978* | | No. 7 Kansas | W 89–83 $^{OT}$ | 5–2 | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Dec 26, 1978 | | at California | W 59–54 | 6–2 (2–0) | Harmon Gym Berkeley, California |
| Dec 29, 1978* | | vs. Holy Cross | W 78–60 | 7–2 | Cole Fieldhouse College Park, Maryland |
| Dec 30, 1978* | | at Maryland | L 79–83 | 7–3 | Cole Fieldhouse College Park, Maryland |
| Pac-10 regular season ||||||
| Jan 5, 1979 | | Oregon | W 70–64 | 8–3 (3–0) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Jan 6, 1979 | | Oregon State | W 76–75 | 9–3 (4–0) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Jan 13, 1979 | | No. 6 UCLA | L 86–89 | 9–4 (4–1) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Jan 18, 1979 | | at Arizona State | W 69–65 | 10–4 (5–1) | ASU Activity Center Tempe, Arizona |
| Jan 20, 1979* | | at Texas | L 68–87 | 10–5 | Frank Erwin Center Austin, Texas |
| Jan 22, 1979 | | at Arizona | L 72–74 | 10–6 (5–2) | McKale Center Tucson, Arizona |
| Jan 27, 1979 | | Washington State | W 67–61 | 11–6 (6–2) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Jan 30, 1979 | | Washington | W 69–59 | 12–6 (7–2) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Feb 3, 1979 | | at Oregon | W 87–64 | 13–6 (8–2) | McArthur Court Eugene, Oregon |
| Feb 5, 1979 | | at Oregon State | L 67–70 | 13–7 (8–3) | Gill Coliseum Corvallis, Oregon |
| Feb 9, 1979 | | at No. 4 UCLA | L 94–102 | 13–8 (8–4) | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, California |
| Feb 15, 1979 | | Arizona | W 70–67 | 14–8 (9–4) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Feb 17, 1979 | | Arizona State | W 75–59 | 15–8 (10–4) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Feb 22, 1979 | | at Washington State | W 71–69 | 16–8 (11–4) | Friel Court at Beasley Coliseum Pullman, Washington |
| Feb 24, 1979 | | at Washington | W 61–59 | 17–8 (12–4) | Hec Edmundson Pavilion Seattle, Washington |
| Mar 1, 1979 | | Stanford | W 79–68 | 18–8 (13–4) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| Mar 3, 1979 | | California | W 86–64 | 19–8 (14–4) | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, California |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| Mar 9, 1979* | | vs. Utah State First round | W 86–67 | 20–8 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, California |
| Mar 11, 1979* | | vs. No. 8 DePaul Second round | L 78–89 | 20–9 | Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, California |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time. ||||||