Longtime Pac-12 rivals will meet for the second time since heading their separate ways when 21st-ranked Southern California and Cal square off in a nonconference game Wednesday night in Berkeley, Calif.
Having met twice annually as members of the same conference, the Trojans (2-0) and Golden Bears (2-1) chose to continue their intrastate battle as nonconference foes in 2024. Cal won that game 71-66 in Los Angeles.
The teams did not face each other last season. USC belongs to the Big Ten, and Cal is a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Both teams traveled to the Nevada side of the California border to participate in the eight-team Lake Tahoe Classic on Sunday, when USC got 32 points from Rodney Rice and 30 from Alijah Arenas in a 93-86 win over Wichita State, after Cal wasted a 19-point effort from Michael Cooper in an 86-68 loss to then-No. 10 Houston.
A Trojans lineup featuring 6-foot-11 Adonis Ratliff and his 7-foot brother, Darius, could pose problems for Cal, which has yet to get its lone returning starter, center Lee Dort, in the lineup due to a leg injury.
The Trojans also feature quality depth, led by KJ Lewis — who started 27 games at Georgetown last season but now is a reserve guard behind Rice and Arenas.
Despite Lewis scoring just five points against Wichita State, USC coach Eric Musselman noted the crucial role the defensive-minded guard played in the triumph.
“(Lewis) really turned the game,” Musselman said postgame. “Our mentality of a tough, gritty team kind of changed with the complexion of what he gave us.”
Wednesday’s game will provide a homecoming of sorts for Musselman, who coached the NBA’s Golden State Warriors during the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons down the road from Berkeley, when the club was based in Oakland.
One of Musselman’s star players in his first season with the Warriors was Gilbert Arenas, the father of current Trojans star Alijah Arenas.
Cal has its own coach and star-player links to the NBA in coach Mark Madsen, a former player for the Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves, and forward Jake Wilkins, son of Basketball Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins.
Jake Wilkins scored in double figures in his first two games for Cal — wins over Adams State and Radford — before being held to two points in the loss to Houston.
Cal will play its second consecutive nationally ranked opponent, hoping to have grown from the defeat against the Cougars’ rugged defense.
“We scheduled (the Houston) game knowing Houston is a top-10, top-15 team based on the belief in our team and in our players,” Madsen told the media after the loss. “Honestly, there’s a number of things that happened on the court that are controllable, that are preventable, that we can correct.”
Cooper led Cal in scoring against Adams State (24 points) in addition to his team-high 19 vs. Houston, while Nojus Indrusaitis went for 30 against Radford.
Cooper averages a team-high 19.7 points per game, and Arenas tops USC at 25.5.