Southern California @ Southern Methodist preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 17, 2017 ) Southern California 66, Southern Methodist 65

USC and SMU will meet for the third time in a little over a year when the 18th-ranked Trojans travel to Dallas to take on the defending American Athletic Conference champions. USC swept two meetings last season, including a dramatic 66-65 upset of the sixth seeded Mustangs in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Tulsa, Okla.

The Trojans also defeated SMU 79-7, at home in Los Angeles last November behind 17 points by 6-10 junior Bennie Boatwright, who connected on 4-of-7 3-pointers. But it was the painful NCAA tourney loss a few months later that no doubt will be on the minds of the Mustangs and what is expected to be a sellout crowd at Moody Coliseum. USC trailed by 10 points in the second half of that contest but rallied to take the lead on a 3-pointer by guard Elijah Stewart with 37 seconds left, and the Trojans then held on as Mustangs guard Shake Milton missed a floater at the buzzer that would have won it. "There used to be a show on TV when I was little talking about the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat," SMU coach Tim Jankovich said afterward. "I think it was Wide World of Sports. I can certainly relate to that show right now."

TV: 10 p.m. ET, ESPNU

ABOUT USC (4-1): All five starters are back from squad that defeated the Mustangs, including Stewart, who is averaging 9.6 points and shooting 39.1 percent from 3-point range. The Trojans will be trying to rebound from a 75-59 home loss to 10th-ranked Texas A&M on Sunday night that saw them suffer through their worst shooting effort of the season (28 percent) andcaused head coach Andy Enfield to say: "Our defense was good enough to win. Our offense was not." Boatwright leads the team in scoring (16.8) while 6-11 junior Chimezie Metu (16.6) is second while also grabbing a team best 8.4 rebounds with senior point guard Jordan McLaughlin (14.4 points) also averaging in double figures and dishing off a team-leading 28 assists.

ABOUT SMU (6-2): The Mustangs are 5-0 at home this season with both of their losses coming in the Battle 4 Atlantis Tourney in Nassau, Bahamas to Northern Iowa (61-58) and Western Kentucky (63-61). The 6-6 Milton, the AAC Preseason Player of the Year, is one of two returning starters who will be looking for revenge and leads the team in scoring (18.4) to go along with 27 assists and 13 steals. Junior guard Jarray Foster (14.9 points) and freshman forward Ethan Chargois (12.5) are also averaging in double figures while returning AAC Co-Sixth Man of the Year Ben Emelogu II is averaging 9.9 points and a team-best 6.3 rebounds.

TIP-INS

1. USC has won its last seven road non-conference games including a 93-89 overtime victory at Vanderbilt on Nov. 19.

2. SMU has won 27 straight games at Moody Coliseum, the third-longest active home win streak nationally.

3. USC G De'Anthony Melton, who had four points and three assists in the NCAA tourney win over SMU, has yet to play this season as the school investigates his eligibility as part of the FBI probe into corruption and bribery in college basketball.

PREDICTION: USC 84, SMU 78