Southern California @ Stanford preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 6, 2019 ) Stanford 66, Southern California 77

Since opening Pac-12 play with a 5-2 record, USC has dropped three of its last four games and fallen into a tie for fifth place in the tight conference race. The Trojans look to get untracked Wednesday when they begin a Bay Area road trip against Stanford, which saw its three-game winning streak come to an end with last Sunday’s 69-46 loss to Oregon.

USC senior forward Bennie Boatwright, averaging a team-high 17.6 points and 6.6 rebounds, drew praise from the opposition after scoring 24 points on 8-of-15 shooting in last Saturday’s 69-65 loss to Colorado. “He’s tricky because he uses so many moves and so many shot fakes,” Buffaloes forward Evan Battey told reporters. “He hits in the lane, he can post-up. He’s really hard to guard.” The 6-10, 235-pound Boatwright is averaging 20.2 points in Pac-12 play but needs more help from guards Derryck Thornton, Jonah Mathews and Elijah Weaver, who combined for one assist in the loss to Colorado. USC beat Stanford 77-66 at Galen Center in early January and figures to be tested again by the Cardinal, who are 7-2 at home this season.

TV: 11 p.m. ET, ESPNU

ABOUT USC (13-11, 6-5 Pac-12): The Trojans’ imposing frontcourt includes 6-11 junior Nick Rakocevic, who averages 15.6 points and ranks second in the Pac-12 in rebounding at 9.7 per game. Much was expected from highly touted freshman Kevin Porter, Jr., but the 6-6 guard has battled injuries and averaged 6.4 points on 38.1 percent shooting in seven league games. Coach Andy Enfield is also hoping for more production from Thornton, who averaged 5.5 points on 4-of-19 shooting in back-to-back losses to Utah and Colorado last week.

ABOUT STANFORD (12-11, 5-6): The Cardinal tied its season-low point total against Oregon and struggled offensively without sophomore point guard Daejon Davis, who ranks second on the team in scoring at 12.6 points per game but sat out due to an apparent head injury and is listed as day-to-day. Sophomore forward KZ Okpala ranks fifth in the league in scoring (17.4) while shooting 40 percent from 3-point range but was held to 10 points on 3-of-14 shooting against Oregon. Freshman guard Bryce Wills continues to impress, averaging 11 points and five rebounds in his last six games.

TIP-INS

1. Stanford has won its last four at home and six of its last nine overall against USC.

2. USC has averaged 83.6 points in its 13 wins compared to 68.7 points in its 11 losses.

3. Stanford freshman Cormac Ryan had a career-high 18 points on six 3-pointers in January’s loss to USC.

PREDICTION: USC 75, Stanford 67