Stanford (11-9, 5-2) at
USC (15-6, 6-2)
Wednesday, Jan. 24 • 6:00 p.m. PT
Galen Center • Los Angeles, Calif.
Television • ESPNU
Radio • GoStanford.com | TuneIn
Live Statistics • GoStanford.com
Game Notes • Stanford | USC
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STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford, winners of five of its last six games, faces its third opponent in the top four in the conference in its last four contests when the Cardinal meets USC Wednesday night at the Galen Center in Los Angeles. The Cardinal is third in the conference with a 5-2 record, while the Trojans are second with a 6-2 mark. Just ahead of both schools in Pac-12 leader Arizona at 6-1.
They have the look of a tournament team…
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) January 24, 2018
Reid Travis told @TheAndyKatz what it will take to get @StanfordMBB to win in March! pic.twitter.com/LU7Jy6eVpf
PICKENS AND OKPALA MAKE THE DIFFERENCE IN CONFERENCE PLAY
After missing several key pieces during nonconference play, Stanford has played with all but one of its main contributors (Marcus Sheffield) during its seven conference games. The addition of Dorian Pickens (missed 11 of the first 13 games) and KZ Okpala (missed the first 12 games) has made all the difference. The Dec. 30 Pac-12 opener was the first time both Pickens and Okpala played together in a game. With both in the lineup, Stanford is 5-2, matching its best conference start in the last 14 seasons. It's the fourth time in the last 14 seasons the Cardinal has started 5-2.
?? OH ?? IT'S ?? LIT ??@DorianPickens11
— Stanford Men's Basketball (@StanfordMBB) January 20, 2018
??: @CBSSports#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/TuIUNfF0xJ
STANFORD IN THE LAST SIX GAMES
• Won five consecutive conference games for the first time in 10 seasons (2007-08)
• Won five consecutive games overall for the first time in three seasons (2014-15)
• Posted first conference road sweep in eight seasons (at Oregon/Oregon St. Feb. 18/20, 2010)
• Moved 129 spots in 19 days in the NCAA RPI from 214 on Jan. 2 to 85 on Jan. 21
• Defeated its first nationally-ranked opponent (No. 16 Arizona State) in 13 opportunities
• Erased deficits of nine points or more (three in second half) in four of the five wins
• Daejon Davis' buzzer-beater to defeat UCLA was Stanford's first buzzer-beater in 14 seasons
• All six games have been decided by nine points or less
AGAINST USC
Wednesday marks the 251st meeting between Stanford and USC. The Cardinal leads the all-time series by two games (126-124). Stanford has won six of the last seven. Earlier this season, freshman Daejon Davis hit a 50-foot buzzer-beater against USC to win it for Stanford. The Cardinal has won two of its last three at the Galen Center. It dropped a 72-56 decision in its last visit to USC on Jan. 7, 2017. Stanford has swept the season series from USC in each its last two multiple-game opportunities during the 2014 and 2015 conference seasons. The two schools played just once each of the last two seasons due to Pac-12 scheduling.
CARDINAL PLAYERS AGAINST USC
Eleven active Stanford players have played against USC in their careers. Dorian Pickens has averaged 8.2 ppg in five games against the Trojans. With Reid Travis missing the entire 2015-16 season and last year's lone contest against USC, the fourth-year junior has faced the Trojans just twice in his career - once as a freshman in 2015 and earlier this season. He matched his career-high with 29 points and added 10 rebounds against USC earlier this month.
| Player vs. USC | Games | Minutes | Points | Rebounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reid Travis | 2 | 44 | 33 | 14 |
| Dorian Pickens | 5 | 102 | 41 | 15 |
| Michael Humphrey | 5 | 97 | 35 | 19 |
| Robert Cartwright | 3 | 44 | 5 | 4 (assists) |
| Josh Sharma | 2 | 38 | 10 | 10 |
| KZ Okpala | 1 | 25 | 11 | 3 |
| Daejon Davis | 1 | 37 | 9 | 5 |
| Oscar da Silva | 1 | 30 | 6 | 4 |
| Isaac White | 1 | 13 | 3 | 2 |
| Kodye Pugh | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Trevor Stanback | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
LAST TIME OUT
In a back-and-forth contest among Pac-12 leaders at Maples Pavilion, No. 14 Arizona used a Rawle Alkins go-ahead layup with 38 seconds remaining to out-last Stanford, 73-71, and snap the Cardinal's five-game winning streak. Dorian Pickens had one final chance from deep, but couldn't connect at the buzzer. Reid Travis had 20 points and 10 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the year. Michael Humphrey also finished with a double-double, collecting 13 points and 12 rebounds.
PICKENS' OUTSIDE TOUCH
Since returning from injury seven games ago at the beginning of Pac-12 play, Dorian Pickens leads the team in three pointers (21) and is second on the team in scoring during conference games (15.7). He ranks 12th in the Pac-12 in scoring during conference action and is third in the league in three-pointers per game (3.0). He matched his career-high with seven threes (7-for-10) in the win at Washington State. Pickens owns 151 career three-pointers, which ranks 14th in school history.
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— Stanford Men's Basketball (@StanfordMBB) January 18, 2018
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IS VERY GOOD AT THREES
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??: @Pac12Networks#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/0U4V8WTcRw
TRAVIS AMONG NATION'S BEST POST PLAYERS
Junior forward Reid Travis, a preseason All-American and candidate for several national player of the year awards, leads the Pac-12 in scoring at 20.0 ppg. The forward has matched his career-high with 29 points (first recorded against Kansas last season) in victories over USC and San Francisco this season. He became the 45th member of Stanford's 1,000-point club earlier this season and enters Wednesday's game at USC with 1,145 points and 604 rebounds in his 83-game career so far. Travis ranks sixth in the Pac-12 in rebounding (7.6 rpg).
.@2ReidTravis2 fought his way to his seventh double-double Saturday, this time against a special talent in the post.#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/GnsovOzkvF
— Stanford Men's Basketball (@StanfordMBB) January 21, 2018
Travis ranks in the top-six in the Pac-12 in 10 categories
| Category | Conference Rank | National Rank | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoring Average | 1 | 35 | 20.0 |
| Total Points | 1 | 35 | 400 |
| Free Throws Made | 4 | 35 | 103 |
| Free Throws Attempted | 1 | 10 | 156 |
| Total Field Goals Made | 2 | 22 | 143 |
| Rebounding Average | 6 | 130 | 7.6 |
| Total Rebounds | 6 | 115 | 152 |
POST PRESENCE
Stanford's starting post players, Reid Travis and Michael Humphrey, have combined to average 31.3 points and 15.8 rebounds per game. The duo is second in the conference among starting post players in both combined scoring and rebounding, the only pair to rank in the top-three in both categories in the conference. Travis leads the Pac-12 in scoring at 20.0 ppg and is sixth in rebounding at 7.6 rpg. Humphrey is fourth in the conference in rebounding at 8.2 rpg, to go along with 11.3 ppg.
Pac-12's Post Players in 2017-18
| School | Players | Combined Scoring | Combined Rebounding |
|---|---|---|---|
| USC | Boatwright/Metu | 31.7 | 13.8 |
| Stanford | Travis/Humphrey | 31.3 | 15.8 |
| Oregon State | Tinkle/Eubanks | 31.0 | 13.7 |
| Arizona | Ayton/Ristic | 30.2 | 17.7 |
| California | Lee/Sueing | 26.3 | 13.5 |
| Washington State | Franks/Bernstine | 24.5 | 14.5 |
| Utah | Collette/Rawson | 24.0 | 11.1 |
| Oregon | Brown/White | 21.6 | 10.4 |
| UCLA | Welsh/Golomon | 20.0 | 15.0 |
| Colorado | King/Bey | 19.8 | 12.7 |
| Washington | Timmins/Dickerson | 19.4 | 13.7 |
| Arizona State | White/Mitchell | 19.1 | 14.3 |
YOUTH MOVEMENT
One of the top recruiting classes in school history has played a big role in this season's success. Each of the Cardinal's four freshmen have started at least one game and three - Daejon Davis, Oscar da Silva and Isaac White - started together in six games earlier this season. At least two freshmen have started in 18 of Stanford's 20 contests.
All four average more than 23 minutes per game. Davis leads the Cardinal in assists (4.4 apg), White leads the Cardinal in three-pointers (33) and da Silva leads Stanford in blocks (20). KZ Okpala, who made his collegiate debut eight games ago, is averaging 10.8 ppg in 30.8 mpg.
In the win over Arizona State, Stanford's final 16 points were scored by freshmen. In the victory at Washington State, Stanford's four freshmen scored the first 23 points of the second half during the Cardinal's 21-3 run to erase its deficit en route to the road win.
Prior to this season, Stanford last started three freshmen on January 27, 1983 (at Washington) with Keith Ramee, Andy Fischer and Earl Koberlein earned the starting nod in that contest.
Freshman Production
| Name | G-S | Minutes | Points | Rebounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Isaac White | 19-9 | 23.4 | 8.2 | 1.7 |
| Daejon Davis | 18-18 | 29.3 | 9.9 | 4.4 (assists) |
| Oscar da Silva | 20-11 | 26.6 | 6.0 | 5.5 |
| KZ Okpala | 8-6 | 30.9 | 10.8 | 3.6 |
OKPALA MAKING IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Freshman KZ Okpala made his collegiate debut eight games ago and has made an immediate impact. The forward is fourth on the team in scoring at 10.8 ppg. He is also averaging 3.6 rebounds in 30.9 minutes per game. Okpala, who has started six of the eight games he has played in, scored a career-best 21 points at Washington State.
Show out, @kz_okpala_.#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/QJaVJb2uVX
— Stanford Men's Basketball (@StanfordMBB) January 12, 2018
HUMPHREY CONTROLLING THE GLASS
Michael Humphrey, who was among the Pac-12 leaders in rebounding last season, ranks fourth in the Pac-12 in rebounding with an average of 8.2 rpg. The forward ranks third in the conference and 54th nationally in defensive rebounds per game (6.4 drpg). He posted a career-high 18 rebounds against Pacific on Nov. 12. The senior, who is averaging 11.3 ppg, has four double-doubles this year.
DAVIS CONTROLS THE POINT
Freshman Daejon Davis has started all 18 games he has played in. He averaged 15.0 points, 6.0 assists and 5.4 rebounds during Stanford's recent five-game winning streak. After averaging 7.0 ppg in his first five games, he is averaging 11.1 points in his last 13 contests.
Highlighting his recent play is the 50-foot heave to win the game as the buzzer sounded against USC. The freshman registered a career-high 22 points and matched his career-high with seven assists in leading Stanford to a double overtime victory over UCLA. He posted his first career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds in the win at Washington.
WIN NO. 100 FOR HAASE
The Dec. 17 victory over San Francisco was head coach Jerod Haase's 100th career coaching victory. He is in his sixth season as a head coach and second with Stanford, following four successful seasons at UAB. The win was Haase's 20th at the helm of the Cardinal.
Shoutout to Reid and Coach Haase for reaching major milestones today! #GoStanford
A post shared by Stanford Men's Basketball (@stanfordmbb) on Dec 17, 2017 at 5:49pm PST
THE FOURTH-YEAR CLASS
The four members of Stanford's fourth-year class - Reid Travis, Dorian Pickens, Michael Humphrey and Robert Cartwright - accounted for 62.6 percent of the team's scoring and 55.4 percent of the team's rebounding last season. Pickens and Humphrey are true seniors, while Travis and Cartwright have each had their medical hardship waivers granted and are redshirt juniors with another year of eligibility remaining after this season. Cartwright missed the entire 2015-16 season with a compound fracture of his right forearm sustained in preseason practice on Nov. 2, 2015. Travis was forced to miss the final 22 games of the 2015-16 season with a right leg injury.
PETER SAUER CAPTAINSHIP
Head coach Jerod Haase announced the establishment of the Peter Sauer Captainship in September, naming Reid Travis, Dorian Pickens and Michael Humphrey captains. The three wear patches on their uniforms honoring the legacy of the late Peter Sauer, a team captain and leader of Stanford's 1998 Final Four team. Stanford will celebrate the 20-year anniversary of the 1998 Final Four team Feb. 24, 2018, against Washington State.