George Nikitin - AP

View full size photo »

Sorry I am late...

Lets see how the guys do at Pauley.

Leave you comments here

FIGHT ON!

Danny Moloshok - AP

View full size photo »

So the big question tonight is how will USC respond on the court after having self imposed sanctions placed on the program this past weekend.

Coach Kevin O'Neill hopes the team rebounds with a sense of purpose...

O’Neill said this season still holds the promise of being "special." I asked how that could be without the possibility of playing in the NCAA Tournament, which only happens to be the ultimate goal of every college basketball player.

"You can have a special season by playing your hearts out every single game," O’Neill said. "Hopefully, 10 years from now, they’ll look back and say, ‘Remember that group I played with? This group of guys I played with really kicked butt all the time.’

"That’s how you have a special season."

Well, that is all well and good but these are still kids and it should surprise no one if there is a let down.

Anyway...Join us here.

Leave your comments, questions and rants here.

FIGHT ON!

More photos » AP

Browse more photos »

Horrible news today...as if we haven't had enough of late.

From USC's Official Website

Rory Markas, the play-by-play announcer for both the USC men's basketball team and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, passed away on Monday (Jan. 4) at his home in Palmdale, Calif. He was 54.

No details on his death are available at this time. Funeral service information is pending.

Markas was in his 12th season handling the radio play-by-play duties for the Trojans and also spent the past 8 seasons in a similar role on television and radio with the Angels. He also was a reporter for FOX 11 KTTV in Los Angeles.

"The entire Trojan family is shocked and saddened to learn of this sad news about Rory," said USC athletic director Mike Garrett. "We held him and the outstanding broadcasting work he did for us in the highest regard. He was a consummate professional and a well-loved individual. He'll be a very difficult person to replace. We want to extend our support and condolences to his family."

Said USC head men's basketball coach Kevin O'Neill: "I've only been at USC a short time, but it didn't take me long to realize that Rory was a top-notch announcer and great guy. It's so sad. He had so many games still in him. Our prayers go to his family and friends in this difficult time."

"Rory was one of the great professionals in the business," said Jim Hefner, who worked with Markas as the analyst on USC radio broadcasts. "But more importantly, he was one of the nicest, kindest people I've ever been around. I'm sure that everyone who worked with him will truly miss him. He was one of a kind."

As we get more info on the services we will pass it along.

Markas' replacements are as follows...

Steve Physioc and Pete Arbogast will fill in as the USC men's basketball radio play-by-play announcer for the remainder of the 2010 season.

Physioc, who worked with Markas through 2009 on the Angels' television and radio broadcasts, will announce USC's 7 p.m. game at Stanford on Wednesday (Jan. 6). Because of a conflict with the Lakers' game, that Trojan-Cardinal contest will air on KLAA 830 and KGIL 1260 instead of USC flagship 710 ESPN Radio (KSPN-AM).

Arbogast, who is USC's football radio play-by-play announcer, then will handle the final 15 games of the 2010 season, beginning with Saturday's (Jan. 9) broadcast at California at 7:30 p.m. That game will air on 710 ESPN.

The pair previously filled in for Markas during part of last season when he was recovering from November 2008 surgery to remove a blood clot from the side of his head.

Ourthoughts and prayers are with his family...

When the O.J. Mayo story broke almost two years ago one of the issues we had here was Mike Garrett allowing Rodney Guillory to have access to the USC basketball offices let alone on campus after his involvement with Jeff Trepangier and his ultimate suspension from the team after Guillory paid for a plane ticket for Trepangier.

That has always been the biggest issue to me. How could Garrett allow Guillory back in? How could he not know that Guillory was involved with Mayo when it was Guillory who "delivered" Mayo to Tim Floyd? What made him take the risk of giving Guillory a second chance to burn USC? Some of it probably had to do with Garrett's wish to fill the Galen Center up and to sell the Founders Seats which were worth a boatload of money to athletic department. Maybe it was because Garrett was channeling his inner Rick Neuheisel to try and take away the basketball monopoly from Westwood.

Who knows, but what I do know is that Garrett being asleep at the switch in regards to the Mayo recruitment tells me a lot. Never mind that my Dad has shared a number of stories in regards to his interactions with Garrett over the past several years...I have heard many of the same type of stories from many others in how he treats people.

Continue reading this post »

More photos » Danny Moloshok - AP

Browse more photos »

The title of the post is pretty much what everyone else is saying in regards to USC's decision to self-impose sanctions on the basketball program.

Just a few general thoughts on this...

It is a pretty tough pill to swallow when you think about the kids who had absolutely nothing to do with this whole mess.

I have read a number of columns and articles that have stated that the team is shocked and dismayed at USC's decision to self-impose sanctions. As I said yesterday how did anyone not see this coming? Maybe because we hadn't heard anything about this for such a long time that people forgot this was out there.

I certainly don't accept that.

I do feel bad for our guys. They are left holding the bag for something that many of them weren't even around for. But how could they not know this was a possibility? If the team wasn't playing so good after all it went through after all of the events from over the summer would this be such a big deal to us? I still think the timing is perfect. Do it before the season and it barely would have registered...we all expected the team to have a rough go of things. Do it towards the end of the season when the team is on this run looks bad as well. People would have scream why now?! Doing it now sends a message to the NCAA, regardless of how late it is, that SC takes the apparent wrongdoing here seriously, determined there was an issue and punished itself for it.

Yes, it is a little like closing the barn door after the horses have already left but it is what it is. The NCAA can't go after Mayo, the only thing they could do to Floyd is to censure/ban him from the college coaching ranks...not likely. So until we hear from the NCAA...this is just the appetizer.

Continue reading this post »

More photos » Mark J. Terrill - AP

Browse more photos »

Lets not get too comfortable here..

This is just the beginning. I have never heard of the NCAA accepting ANY self-imposed sanctions without having some official say. They have not done that......yet.

It would also appear that USC knows something is coming...

The sanctions follow the university's investigation into allegations Mayo received improper benefits while in school.

The basketball program's self-imposed punishment suggested that USC knew the NCAA was about to take action, said the director of a compliance department at a major university familiar with such investigations.

"If they're doing all that, they know something's coming," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They know they're going to have their day in front of the [NCAA's] committee on infractions, and they're preparing."

The NCAA has a history of giving credit to schools that self-impose sanctions, but the organization nonetheless could hand down further penalties

Continue reading this post »

More photos » Nick Ut - AP

Browse more photos »

Presently, USC basketball is 10-4 overall, 2-0 in the Pac-10 conference, and holds an eight game winning streak. But as of today, none of that truly matters, as the university administration, led by athletic director Mike Gerrett, has self imposed sanctions on the basketball program that include a ban on postseason play for the 2009-2010 season, thus eliminating the Trojans' hopes for a birth in the Big Dance or even the NIT come March. Such disappointment however is life for a USC hoops fan.

Here is the Official release from the school...(Emphasis added - There is also a video of Garrett's statement as well)

The University of Southern California today announced that it has implemented self-imposed sanctions on its men's basketball program for violating NCAA rules.

The sanctions are a result of a University investigation that found NCAA rules violations related to O.J. Mayo, who played for the USC's men's basketball team during the 2007-2008 season.

"USC takes allegations of NCAA rules violations very seriously. When allegations were made regarding our men's basketball program, we immediately began an investigation and worked closely with the NCAA and the Pac-10 in an attempt to ascertain the truth," said USC Athletic Director Mike Garrett. "When we've done something wrong, we have an obligation to do something about it and that is exactly what we are doing here."

The self-imposed sanctions for the men's basketball program include a one-year ban on post-season competition following the 2009-2010 regular season, including the Pac-10 Conference basketball tournament; a reduction of one scholarship for the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 academic years; a reduction by one of the number of coaches permitted to engage in off-campus recruiting activities during the summer of 2010, and a reduction in the total number of recruiting days by twenty days (from 130 to 110) for the 2010-2011 academic year.

In addition, because of Mayo's involvement with Rodney Guillory, whom under NCAA rules became a USC booster due to his role in Mayo's recruitment, USC will vacate all wins during the 2007-2008 regular season, which was when Mayo competed while ineligible. USC will also return to the NCAA the money it received through the Pac-10 Conference for its participation in the 2008 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Tournament.

These self-imposed sanctions impact only the men's basketball program, and do not affect any other program.

While the news is incredibly frustrating, especially in light of the team's recent performance, it really comes as no surprise. After a long, drawn-out 18 month investigation, something was going to come out of it this whole mess, and on January 3^rd, it did.

Continue reading this post »

Chris Carlson - AP

View full size photo »

So, SC plays UNLV in Diamond Head Classic Final.

After two tough games against Central Michigan and St Mary's SC hopes to close the tournament out with a win. Here is a little bit on UNLV from the LAT...

USC faces Nevada Las Vegas in the championship game of the inaugural Diamond Head Classic. The Runnin' Rebels advanced with a 77-53 win over Hawaii. They are led by junior guard Tre'Von Willis (15.4 points a game) and sophomore guard Oscar Bellfield (10.4). Los Angeles Fairfax graduate Chace Stanback, who transferred to UNLV from UCLA after the 2007-08 season, is averaging 8.8 points.

So, join us here. I will be on and off the thread as we  close out our Christmas Celebration with family. Here is hoping for a great win!!

FIGHT ON!