The call came on a Monday morning, just six days ago. USC was planning to hold its final competition non-conference. In light of the deadly shooting on Brown's campus, the Brown men's basketball team I wouldn't go west. If the coach Eric Musselman hoping to test his Trojans again before the new year, he and his USC staff had less than 24 hours to find replacements.
That's how USC found itself on Sunday facing UC Santa Cruz, a 6-6 Division III team with losses to Chapman, Redlands and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. USC easily defeated the Banana Slugs in 102-63 victory. But given the difficulties that went into scheduling Santa Cruz, no one was complaining about the Trojans' flawless win before the Trojans' winter break.
Musselman, who picked up his 250th career win, initially hoped USC could find a D-1 program to take Brown's place. But rules limiting the number of regular-season games a D-1 program can play has narrowed that list significantly. USC coaches had to count by hand to decide which teams would qualify.
First they looked at all the local schools and found that none of them were working. They looked at the teams in front of local schools and found nothing there either. They even looked at Hawaii's schedule, since schools facing Hawaii get an exception to allow an extra game.
Only a “select few” schools meet any of the criteria, one program participant told The Times. These teams could make it work because they faced a D-II or D-III team at some point in the season that didn't count toward the game limit. In some cases, this also meant buying out that school's playing contract.
“There are some Division I schools, but we couldn’t get them to say yes, I don’t know why,” Musselman said. “Because I thought it was a great opportunity for some Division I schools to get guaranteed money.”
This was perhaps the only complicating factor. By playing as a Division I team, USC also risked affecting its team's schedule during the tournament, Musselman said. Even a smaller margin of victory could mean a price to pay.
So why not just cancel the game?
After a short holiday break, USC faces trips to No. 2 Michigan and No. 6 Michigan State. Musselman didn't want the gauntlet to begin for another four days.
“From a basketball standpoint,” Musselman explained, “we can’t afford to go into the break tonight.”
The staff spoke with scheduling experts who agreed that there was one option that would make sense for USC: Find a team from the lower echelons of college basketball that would be willing to take a loss to the Trojans to fill its non-conference schedule. So the game won't even be added to USC's tournament resume.
It was with all of these criteria in mind that Musselman and his staff settled on St. Croix. But the Banana Slugs, who voted as a team to play the Trojans, didn't just roll over. They shot from three-point range, scoring eight in the first half alone. They only made eight shots inside the arc the entire game.
With seven minutes left in the first half, Santa Cruz trailed by just three points.
But eventually, USC's advantage in every other category except outdoor shooting will catch up with Santa Cruz. In the second half, the Trojans kicked one lane, then another, then another. They shot 18 of 19 to open the second half and dominated the scoring, finishing with a 36-rebound lead.
Musselman decided to give more minutes to 7-foot-5 center Gabe Dines, who will play with a three-big lineup against Michigan. Dines responded with a team-best 16 points to go along with five rebounds and four blocked shots, which Musselman said was a “huge step in the right direction.”
The game also gave new point guard Cam Woods a chance to get comfortable in the Trojans' rotation. Woods missed all five of his shots in 21 minutes, but was grateful for his first shot at the hoop since March when he played Robert Morris.
“I definitely needed this game,” Woods said.
For the Trojans, it was necessary preparation for halftime. Considering how much effort it took to get on the schedule, their coach was especially grateful.
“Santa Cruz has stepped up,” Musselman said, “and I give them credit. I really do.”
