Overview
- Tipoff is Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Galen Center, Purdue’s first game in the arena and first visit to USC since 1972.
- Purdue enters 16-1 and 6-0 in the Big Ten with an eight-game winning streak to open a West Coast road swing.
- Braden Smith averages a nation-leading 9.6 assists per game and has 922 career assists as Purdue shoots 51.8% and ranks second nationally with 20.9 team assists.
- USC’s leading scorer Chad Baker-Mazara is questionable after a neck issue limited him in the last game, and five-star freshman Alijah Arenas is not expected to play this week.
- Coach Eric Musselman has been changing lineups by design, and if Baker-Mazara is limited the Trojans could lean on a bigger frontcourt rotation, with analysts projecting Purdue as the favorite due to its efficiency.