# 2018–19 USC Trojans men's basketball team

The 2018–19 USC Trojans men's basketball team represented the University of Southern California during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by sixth-year head coach Andy Enfield, they played their home games at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California as members of the Pac-12 Conference.

## Previous season

The Trojans finished the season 24–12, 12–6 in Pac-12 play to finish in second place. As the No. 2 seed in the Pac-12 tournament, they defeated Oregon State in the quarterfinals and Oregon in the semifinals before losing to Arizona in the championship game. They were one of the last four teams not selected for the NCAA tournament and as a result earned a No. 1 seed in the National Invitation Tournament, where they defeated UNC Asheville in the first round before losing to Western Kentucky in the second round.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for Departure |
| Kurt Karis | G | 6'1" | 195 | RS Senior | Northbrook, Illinois | Graduated |
| Elijah Stewart | G | 6'5" | 195 | Senior | Deridder, Louisiana | Graduated |
| Jordan McLaughlin | G | 6'1" | 185 | Senior | Etiwanda, California | Graduated |
| Chimezie Metu | F | 6'11" | 225 | Junior | Lawndale, California | Declared for 2018 NBA draft |
| Harrison Henderson | F | 6'10" | 225 | Sophomore | Dallas, Texas | Transferred |

### 2018 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Kevin Porter Jr. SG | Seattle, WA | Rainier Beach HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Feb 7, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 89 ||||||
| Elijah Weaver PG | Oldsmar, FL | Oldsmar Christian School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Oct 23, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 89 ||||||
| J'Raan Brooks PF | Seattle, WA | Garfield HS | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Mar 11, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 84 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 30, 2017. ||||||
US college sports recruiting information for 2019 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Onyeka Okongwu C | Chino Hills, CA | Chino Hills HS | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | May 14, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Isaiah Mobley PF | Temecula, CA | Rancho Christian School | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | May 18, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Drake London SG | Moorpark, CA | Moorpark HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jun 27, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Max Agbonkpolo SF | Rancho Santa Margarita, CA | Santa Margarita Catholic | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Jul 6, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Kyle Sturdivant PG | Norcross, GA | Norcross HS | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Sep 20, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Ethan Anderson PG | Los Angeles, CA | Fairfax Senior | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Mar 22, 2019 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2019 USC Commits". Rivals.com. "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. |||||||

## Roster

* Sophomore Forward Jordan Usher transferred to Georgia Tech on December 31, 2018 after being suspended indefinitely for "unspecified conduct issues."

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 6, 2018* 8:00 pm, P12N | | Robert Morris Hall of Fame Classic campus-site game | W 83–62 | 1–0 | 20 – Aaron | 16 – Rakocevic | 6 – Mathews | Galen Center (2,502) Los Angeles, CA |
| November 11, 2018* 6:00 pm, P12N | | Vanderbilt | L 78–82 | 1–1 | 19 – Rakocevic | 18 – Rakocevic | 2 – Tied | Galen Center (3,804) Los Angeles, CA |
| November 14, 2018* 7:00 pm, P12N | | Stetson Hall of Fame Classic campus-site game | W 95–59 | 2–1 | 16 – Tied | 12 – Rakocevic | 3 – Tied | Galen Center (1,533) Los Angeles, CA |
| November 19, 2018* 6:30 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. Texas Tech Hall of Fame Classic semifinals | L 63–78 | 2–2 | 15 – Porter | 9 – Rakocevic | 4 – Thornton | Sprint Center Kansas City, MO |
| November 20, 2018* 4:00 pm, ESPN3 | | vs. Missouri State Hall of Fame Classic consolation | W 99–80 | 3–2 | 22 – Boatwright | 7 – Tied | 6 – Thornton | Sprint Center Kansas City, MO |
| November 25, 2018* 4:00 pm, P12N | | Cal State Bakersfield | W 90–75 | 4–2 | 22 – Usher | 9 – Usher | 5 – Weaver | Galen Center (2,348) Los Angeles, CA |
| November 28, 2018* 8:00 pm, P12N | | Long Beach State | W 75–65 | 5–2 | 19 – Rakocevic | 12 – Rakocevic | 6 – Thornton | Galen Center (2,031) Los Angeles, CA |
| December 1, 2018* 1:30 pm, FOX | | No. 5 Nevada | L 61–73 | 5–3 | 20 – Rakocevic | 12 – Rakocevic | 4 – Tied | Galen Center (5,844) Los Angeles, CA |
| December 7, 2018* 6:30 pm, FS1 | | vs. TCU Basketball Hall of Fame Classic | L 61–96 | 5–4 | 14 – Boatwright | 7 – Rakocevic | 7 – Thornton | Staples Center Los Angeles, CA |
| December 15, 2018* 6:00 pm, ESPNU | | vs. Oklahoma Tulsa Showcase | L 70–81 | 5–5 | 17 – Rakocevic | 15 – Rakocevic | 4 – Thornton | BOK Center (7,170) Tulsa, OK |
| December 18, 2018* 7:00 pm | | at Santa Clara | L 92–102 $^{2OT}$ | 5–6 | 22 – Usher | 9 – Boatwright | 5 – Matthews | Leavey Center (2,226) Santa Clara, CA |
| December 21, 2018* 8:00 pm, P12N | | Southern Utah | W 91–49 | 6–6 | 21 – Rakocevic | 10 – Boatwright | 8 – Thornton | Galen Center (3,125) Los Angeles, CA |
| December 30, 2018* 6:00 pm, P12N | | UC Davis | W 73–55 | 7–6 | 19 – Boatwright | 8 – Boatwright | 7 – Matthews | Galen Center (3,127) Los Angeles, CA |
| Pac-12 regular season |||||||||
| January 3, 2019 7:00 pm, P12N | | California | W 82–73 | 8–6 (1–0) | 27 – Rakocevic | 8 – Rakocevic | 12 – Thornton | Galen Center (3,371) Los Angeles, CA |
| January 6, 2019 5:00 pm, ESPNU | | Stanford | W 77–66 | 9–6 (2–0) | 23 – Rakocevic | 10 – Rakocevic | 9 – Thornton | Galen Center (3,768) Los Angeles, CA |
| January 10, 2019 8:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Oregon State | L 74–79 $^{OT}$ | 9–7 (2–1) | 37 – Boatwright | 8 – Boatwright | 3 – Rakocevic | Gill Coliseum (4,935) Corvallis, OR |
| January 13, 2019 5:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Oregon | L 60–81 | 9–8 (2–2) | 15 – Mathews | 8 – Boatwright | 5 – Weaver | Matthew Knight Arena (8,148) Eugene, OR |
| January 19, 2019 1:00 pm, CBS | | UCLA Rivalry | W 80–67 | 10–8 (3–2) | 21 – Tied | 12 – Rakocevic | 7 – Aaron | Galen Center (5,226) Los Angeles, CA |
| January 24, 2019 6:00 pm, FS1 | | Arizona | W 80–57 | 11–8 (4–2) | 27 – Rakocevic | 12 – Tied | 5 – Tied | Galen Center (4,125) Los Angeles, CA |
| January 26, 2019 5:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Arizona State | W 69–67 | 12–8 (5–2) | 17 – Boatwright | 9 – Rakocevic | 6 – Thornton | Galen Center (5,111) Los Angeles, CA |
| January 30, 2019 8:00 pm, FS1 | | at Washington | L 62–75 | 12–9 (5–3) | 22 – Boatwright | 10 – Rakocevic | 4 – Tied | Alaska Airlines Arena (9,121) Seattle, WA |
| February 2, 2019 4:00 pm, P12N | | at Washington State | W 93–84 | 13–9 (6–3) | 25 – Rakocevic | 13 – Rakocevic | 6 – Thornton | Beasley Coliseum (2,559) Pullman, WA |
| February 6, 2019 8:00 pm, P12N | | Utah | L 70–77 | 13–10 (6–4) | 18 – Mathews | 12 – Boatwright | 4 – Thornton | Galen Center (2,952) Los Angeles, CA |
| February 9, 2019 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | Colorado | L 65–69 | 13–11 (6–5) | 24 – Boatwright | 7 – Thornton | 4 – Boatwright | Galen Center (3,974) Los Angeles, CA |
| February 13, 2019 8:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Stanford | L 76–79 | 13–12 (6–6) | 19 – Boatwright | 11 – Rakocevic | 3 – Tied | Maples Pavilion (5,052) Stanford, CA |
| February 16, 2019 5:00 pm, P12N | | at California | W 89–66 | 14–12 (7–6) | 36 – Boatwright | 11 – Rakocevic | 7 – Thornton | Haas Pavilion (7,345) Berkeley, CA |
| February 21, 2019 6:00 pm, ESPN | | Oregon | W 66–49 | 15–12 (8–6) | 20 – Boatwright | 6 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Galen Center (3,425) Los Angeles, CA |
| February 23, 2019 3:00 pm, P12N | | Oregon State | L 62–67 | 15–13 (8–7) | 15 – Matthews | 10 – Porter Jr. | 6 – Thornton | Galen Center (4,772) Los Angeles, CA |
| February 28, 2019 6:00 pm, ESPN | | at UCLA Rivalry | L 88–93 $^{OT}$ | 15–14 (8–8) | 25 – Boatwright | 15 – Boatwright | 7 – Aaron | Pauley Pavilion (12,427) Los Angeles, CA |
| March 7, 2019 7:00 pm, FS1 | | at Utah | L 74–83 | 15–15 (8–9) | 20 – Boatwright | 8 – Rakocevic | 5 – Weaver | Jon M. Huntsman Center (11,007) Salt Lake City, UT |
| March 9, 2019 2:00 pm, P12N | | at Colorado | L 67–78 | 15–16 (8–10) | 17 – Rakocevic | 10 – Rakocevic | 4 – Weaver | CU Events Center (9,379) Boulder, CO |
| Pac-12 tournament |||||||||
| March 13, 2019 12:00 pm, P12N | (8) | vs. (9) Arizona First round | W 78–65 | 16–16 | 22 – Boatwright | 11 – Boatwright | 4 – Boatwright | T-Mobile Arena Paradise, NV |
| March 14, 2019 12:00 pm, P12N | (8) | vs. (1) Washington Quarterfinals | L 75–78 | 16–17 | 17 – Tied | 17 – Rakocevic | 7 – Boatwright | T-Mobile Arena Paradise, NV |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time. |||||||||