Southern California @ Fairfield preview

USC tries to bounce back from its first loss of the season when it faces Fairfield in the first round of the Orlando Invitational on Thursday. The Trojans fell to Temple 70-61 last Friday, while the Stags have dropped two in a row, including a 74-55 setback at Maryland on Nov. 19.

Freshman forward Onyeka Okongwu has been outstanding for USC so far this season, leading the team with 18 points a game along with 8.8 rebounds and 3 blocks. The Trojans also have a pair of seniors scoring in double figures in forward Nick Rakocevic (14.7 points, 9.2 rebounds) and guard Jonah Mathews (11.2). Fairfield has a trio of guards that all score in double figures and play at least 32 minutes a game, led by junior Jesus Cruz (18.2 points). Senior Landon Taliaferro is averaging 14.4 points, while Taj Benning has averages of 10.4 points, 6 rebounds and a team-high 3.4 assists per game.

TV: 4 p.m. ET, ESPNU.

ABOUT USC (5-1): Despite a gaudy record, USC has had an inconsistent offense at times, and it caught up to the Trojans with the loss at Temple. Coach Andy Enfield's squad shot just 38.6 percent from the floor in the loss, including 27.3 percent from 3-point range, scoring a season-low 61 points. Unfortunately, that kind of inconsistency is going to happen when playing three freshmen in your starting lineup, but it's still something that needs to be worked on by the Trojans.

ABOUT FAIRFIELD (1-4): Though it was an ugly loss by 19 points, Fairfield's setback to Maryland may have brought out a new aspect of the Stags' game. Coming into the contest, Fairfield had scored just 19.1 percent of its points from 3-pointers, but against the Terrapins, the Stags hit 12 shots from beyond the arc, accounting for 36 of their 55 points. Coach Jay Young isn't going to rework the offense just to try to recapture that magical shooting night, but he will certainly have his team look for the outside shot more, especially when they're facing a height deficit in the paint.

TIP-INS

1. Taliaferro leads the MAAC in 3-pointers per game with 3 after hitting a season-high five 3-pointers in the loss to Maryland.

2. USC freshman G Ethan Anderson leads the Pac-12 with 36 assists and his 2.77 assist-to-turnover ratio is third among all Pac-12 players.

3. The winner of this contest will face either Marquette or Davidson in the semifinals on Friday.

PREDICTION: USC 76, Fairfield 62