As an eight-time NBA All-Defensive pick and Defensive P.O.Y. (’87) who won five ‘chips in an era where he guarded the likes of Jordan, Dumars, Iceman and Drexler on a regular basis, Michael Cooper had to be intense.

In his post-playing career, most notable for his title-winning stint coaching the WNBA’s L.A. Sparks, Coop hasn’t changed. In his first season as head coach of the USC women’s team, he made headlines for his intensity following a recent win over crosstown rival UCLA. Read More »

You might remember USC’s Leonard Washington as the guy who committed one of the dirtiest plays of the year last season, running down the court and hitting Blake Griffin square in the junk. But today, the 6-7, 230-pound sophomore was told that he won’t even have a chance to get back on the court and redeem himself until 2010, after being declared academically ineligible for the first semester. Read More »

After news broke yesterday morning about Tim Floyd’s resignation at USC, our man Jason Jordan got after tracking down the members of the Trojans’ incoming basketball recruiting class to find out if they were going to stick with USC. Read More »

Whether you’ve got just one empty Big Dance bracket staring back at you or five, here’s a few pointers before you put that crucial $20 on the line:

1. Be wary of the “hot” teams I know it’s tempting to take teams like Mississippi State and USC after they both just ran through their conference tournaments, but be careful. Look at the teams that have pulled off similar runs in the past few years: ‘Cuse in ’06 and Georgia in ’08. Read More »

Going into this year, DeMar DeRozan was supposed to be the next O.J. Mayo — not because he and the possible NBA Rookie of the Year play anything alike, but rather because DeRozan was supposed to follow a similar path as his USC predecessor: one-and-done, a quick Big Dance appearance, and onto the Green Room. Read More »