Texas A&M @ Southern California preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 18, 2016 ) Southern California 65, Texas A&M 63

Few teams have logged as many frequent flyer miles this season as Texas A&M, which opened its season in Germany and also played in the Progressive Legends Classic in Brooklyn, N.Y. Now the 19th-ranked Aggies hit the road again, this time flying to the West Coast for a Sunday night matchup with No. 10 USC.

Texas A&M opened the season with an impressive 88-65 beatdown of then-No. 11 ranked West Virginia in the Armed Forces Classic at Ramstein Air Base in Ramstein, Germany. After a 84-65 home win over UC Santa Barbara, the Aggies flew back to Brooklyn where they defeated Oklahoma State (72-55) and Penn State (98-87) to win the Legends Classic. A&M improved to 5-0 with a tougher-than-expected 81-65 home win Friday over Pepperdine, and head coach Billy Kennedy said his squad, which appeared tired at times, will need to have much more energy Sunday to defeat a USC squad that defeated them last year in State College, 65-63. "We are a different team (than last year), which I think is a good thing," Kennedy said in his postgame press conference Friday night. "If we play like we played tonight we will get beat. You can't go out there and play like a tired team. ... I expect our effort to be better."

TV: 10 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network

ABOUT TEXAS A&M (5-0): D.J. Hogg, a versatile 6-9 junior forward, leads the Aggies in scoring (17.2 points per game) and also is among team leaders in rebounding (7.2), assists (3.6) and steals (1.2) while shooting 54.5 percent (18-of-33) from 3-point range. Tyler Davis, a 6-10 junior center who considered leaving early for the NBA Draft after averaging 14.1 points and 7.0 rebounds last season, is second in scoring (14.4) and rebounding (8.2) while shooting 68.2 percent from the floor. Guard Admon Gilder (13.0 points), forward Robert Williams (12.0) and guard Duane Wilson (11.4), a graduate transfer from Marquette, also are averaging in double figures, with Williams also pulling down a team-leading 9.3 rebounds per game.

ABOUT USC (4-0): Junior forward Bennie Boatwright had his third career double-double (19 points and 11 rebounds) in the Trojans' 88-63 victory over Lehigh on Wednesday and leads the team in scoring (18.5) and is second in rebounding (7.8). Chimezie Metu, a 6-foot-11 junior forward who like the 6-foot-10 Boatwright is on NBA scouts' radar, is second in scoring (17.5) while grabbing a team-leading 8.5 rebounds per game. Senior point guard Jordan McLaughlin (16.0 points), the hero of USC's 93-89 win at Vanderbilt last Sunday when he scored 35 points, and sophomore guard Jonah Mathews (10.5) also are averaging in double figures with McLaughlin also leading the team in assists (5.3) and steals (2.5).

TIP-INS

1. USC has won 21 consecutive non-conference games at the Galen Center.

2. Williams, a 6-10 sophomore who also considered leaving early for the NBA Draft, was named tournament MVP in the Legends Classic after scoring 21 points and grabbing nine rebounds in the championship game win over Penn State.

3. USC has made 12 3-pointers in each of its last two games.

PREDICTION: USC 85, Texas A&M 82