How to Watch Nebraska Men’s Basketball vs. USC: Preview, Breakdown, TV Channel

The Huskers look to snap their four-game losing streak against one of the league's new programs.

Jan 19, 2025; College Park, Maryland, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Fred Hoiberg looks on during the second half against the Maryland Terrapins at Xfinity Center. | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The victory was so close, but yet so far away for the Nebraska men’s basketball Sunday against Maryland on the road, which has been a theme for NU over the last month.

A 9-0 run – capped by two free throws by Brice Williams – tied the contest at 66 with 1:02 remaining in the game at the Xfinity Center, but a Ja’Kobi Gillespie layup with 40 seconds left followed by an Ahron Ulis turnover put the nail in the coffin for the Huskers’ fourth-straight loss. 

Andrew Morgan poured in a team-high 17 points off the bench while Williams finished with 14 for NU’s only double-digit scorers. Nebraska actually outshot the Terrapins (46.6% to 44.8%), but Maryland shot 40% from beyond the arc to help their cause. 

With the season spiraling after such a promising start, the Huskers return home to take on a USC team who’s had their own struggles. 

Here’s all you need to know as the Huskers face the Trojans at PBA for a Wednesday night showdown. 

How to Follow Along 

• Matchup: Nebraska (12-6, 2-5 B1G) vs. USC (11-7, 3-4 B1G) 
• When: Wednesday, January 22
• Where: Pinnacle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Ne.
• Time: 8 p.m. CST
• Watch: Big Ten Network
• Listen: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates

Jan 19, 2025; College Park, Maryland, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers forward Andrew Morgan (23) dunks the ball during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins at Xfinity Center. | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

USC Scout

Head Coach: Eric Musselman | 1st Season at USC; 13th overall as HC (College & Pro) | 11-7 (.611) at USC; 231-100 (.698) College HC Record; 108-138 (.439) Pro Record | 6x NCAA Tournament Appearances, 2x Elite Eights, 2x Sweet 16s | 3x MWC Regular Season title, 1x MWC Tournament title | 1x MWC Coach OTY (2018), 1x NBA D-League Coach OTY (2012) | Previous head coach at Arkansas, Nevada, Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings | Previous assistant at LSU, Arizona State, Memphis Grizzlies, Atlanta Hawks, Orlando Magic and Minnesota Timberwolves. 

2023-2024 Record: 15-18 (8-12 Pac-12, T-9th) | 1x All-Pac-12 second team, 1x All Pac-12 Freshman team, 1x All Pac-12 Defensive team | Did not qualify for the postseason.

All-Time Series: Series tied 5-5 (December 3, 2012  last matchup, 63-51 NU). 

Key Returners: Harrison Hornery, F, Sr.

Key Additions: Desmond Claude, G, Jr. (Xavier) | Chibuzo Agbo, F, Gr. (Boise State) | Saint Thomas, F, Sr. (Northern Colorado) | Wesley Yates III, G, R-Fr. (Washington) | Terrance Williams II, F, Gr. (Michigan) | Josh Cohen, C, Gr. (UMass) | Rashaun Agee, F, Gr. (Bowling Green) | Matt Knowling, G, Gr. (Yale) | Kevin Patton Jr., F, Soph. (San Diego) | Isaiah Elohim, G/F, Fr. (Recruit). 

Key Departures: Boogie Ellis, G (Eligibility) | Isaiah Collier, G (NBA Draft) | Kobe Johnson, G/F, Sr. (UCLA) | DJ Rodman, F (Eligibility) | Joshua Morgan, F (Eligibility) | Vincent Iwuchukwu, C, Jr. (St. John’s) | Oziyah Sellers, G, Jr. (Stanford) | Bronny James, G (NBA Draft) | Kijani Wright, F, Jr. (Vanderbilt) | Arrinten Page, C, Soph. (Cincinnati). 

Jan 14, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Eric Musselman reacts in the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Galen Center. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Outlook: Andy Enfield led USC to rarely seen success on the court during his 11 years in Los Angeles which included an Elite Eight appearance in 2021, but he could never garner the support he needed to thrive leading to his resignation after taking the head coaching position at SMU. As a result, the Trojans brought in one of the most robust head coaches in the sport in Eric Musselman, who was run out from Arkansas after the Hogs poached John Calipari from Kentucky. Musselman peaked early by reaching two Elite Eights and one Sweet 16 within his first four seasons at Arkansas, but a 16-17 record in 2024 soured things in Fayetteville. 

The roster turnover for USC was one of the busiest of any program in the sport with only two of 14 players from the 2023-2024 squad returning under Musselman. Of those two – Harrison Hornery and JD Plough – combined for not even 12 minutes a game. That means 12 transfers and five true freshmen replenished the roster resulting in a 11-7 so far in the 2024-2025 season. 

These changes have led to five players averaging double figures for the Trojans, including leading scoring Desmond Claude (16 PPG, Xavier), Chibuzo Agbo (12.4 PPG, Boise State), Omaha native Saint Thomas (11 PPG, Northern Colorado), Wesley Yates III (10.7 PPG, Yale) and Terrance Williams II (10.6 PPG, Michigan). 

Jan 11, 2025; Champaign, Illinois, USA; USC Trojans guard Desmond Claude (1) controls the ball as Illinois Fighting Illini forward Morez Johnson Jr. (21) defends during the second half at State Farm Center. | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

The rotation also includes 6-foot-10 starting center Josh Cohen who’s averaging 7.8 points and a lower-than-expected 2.4 rebounds per contest. Cohen came over from UMass to spend his final season in college basketball in the California sunshine. Another graduate student transfer, Rahsuan Agee comes over from Bowling Green where he averages 5.8 points and 3.2 rebounds per game off the bench. San Diego sophomore transfer Kevin Patton Jr. has seen action in 16 of the 18 games this season with a pair of starts chipping in nearly four points a game. 

Neither team going into Wednesday have great defenses – especially NU as of late – as the Trojans have allowed the fourth-most points to opponents this season in the Big Ten at 72.3 per contest. The offense is sneaky efficient though, ranking sixth in field goal (48.4%) and three-point percentage (35.2%) while sitting eighth in free throws (74%). 

Playing Maryland as close as they did on the road inspired a little confidence in the Huskers, but a loss is still a loss. Wednesday’s contest looks to be pivotal moving forward in conference play as Nebraska follows the Trojans with traveling to No. 18 Wisconsin, hosting No. 17 Illinois and on the road against No. 15 Oregon. A win could swing some momentum for a team in desperate need of some. I’m optimistic about this matchup. Give me a Nebraska win to snap the losing streak and get off the schnide. 

---

MORE: Nebraska Women's Basketball Hammers Wisconsin, Wins Fifth Straight

MORE: Nebraska Women's Basketball Just Outside of Associated Press Top 25 Rankings

MORE: Associated Press Top 25 Features Six Big Ten Men's Programs

MORE: Michigan State, Purdue Flex the Big Ten's Muscles

MORE: Nebraska's Britt Prince Earns Big Ten Freshman of the Week

---

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.