The USC men's basketball team will face Colorado State at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's Jerry Colangelo Classic to be held at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Ariz. on Dec. 21.
It is the fourth annual Jerry Colangelo Classic and USC defeated Georgia Tech 67-53 at the 2021 event.
"We are excited to participate in the Hall of Fame Jerry Colangelo Classic for a second consecutive season," said USC men's basketball head coach Andy Enfield. "It is a terrific, well-run event which provides a quality nonconference opponent. Playing in an NBA arena is always exciting for our student-athletes and fans."
The 2021-22 Trojans tied the school single-season wins record by going 26-8, finishing third in the Pac-12 and advancing to the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
The 2022-23 Trojans will be led by a strong returning core of guards Boogie Ellis (12.5 ppg), Drew Peterson (12.4 ppg) and Reese Dixon-Waters (4.8 ppg). In addition, USC returns scholarship players Harrison Hornery (F), Kobe Johnson (G), Joshua Morgan (F) and Malik Thomas (G). The 2022-23 Trojans will also feature the No. 6 ranked freshman class of center Vincent Iwuchukwu, forward,Kijani Wright and guards Tre White and Oziyah Sellers.
Colorado State went 25-6 during the 2021-22 season and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. Its .806 winning percentage was the best in program history. USC which won its first 13 games and CSU which won its first 12 games of the 2021-22 season were two of the final teams to suffer a loss this past season.
USC is 6-2 all-time against Colorado State, winning the last meeting 74-67 on Dec. 8, 1990 in Fort Collins, Colo.