5 things to watch in USC men's basketball conference opener vs Oregon

The USC men's basketball team finds itself with a tournament trophy and a national ranking before its first conference game. How cool is that?

The Trojans (7-0) just won the Maui Invitational, picking up two of their three best wins of the season along the way. They are ranked No. 24 in this week's AP Poll, the first time they have been ranked in the Eric Musselman era and first time in general since November 2023.

The Trojans have achieved national relevance in Year 2 of the Muss Bus. But now, it's time to find out if they're for real and they can keep that national spotlight on them, for the right reasons.

Here are five things to watch as the USC Trojans take on the Oregon Ducks on Tuesday night and look to improve to 8-0:

Conference tip-off

You haven't earned your stripes as a top-ranked team until you show how you stack up against conference opponents.

USC's game against Oregon serves as the Trojans' 2025-26 Big Ten opener. The Big Ten is going to be loaded this year, with most of (yes, most of) the conference expected to make the NCAA tournament. Oregon is one of the teams that is expected to be tournament bound.

USC's season will be defined by conference play, and that storyline begins Tuesday. Getting off to a good start can make a massive difference in how the conference narrative plays out over the course of the entire season.

First true road test

Yes, USC just got back from the Maui Invitational, which the Trojans won. So it's not necessarily about handling the travel. But the fact still stands that they have not played in a true road game yet this season. They have played four games at Galen Center and three games in Maui.

We haven't seen this team experience the pressure of a road environment yet. How will the Trojans respond to a tough road environment at Matthew Knight Arena?

Hopefully with a better result than USC football had at Autzen Stadium.

For the record, USC played one road exhibition game outside of Los Angeles against GCU in Phoenix, Arizona back in October. The Trojans beat the Antelopes by 6 points.

What is Rodney Rice's health?

USC's star guard Rice exited the Trojans' Maui Invitational win over Seton Hall early and did not play in the championship game against Arizona State. He appears to be dealing with some kind of a shoulder issue. No word yet on how long he is expected to be out.

Will he return to the lineup against Oregon? Or will the Trojans need to lean more heavily on Chad Baker-Mazara and others once again?

Do Oregon's injured stars play?

The Ducks are also dealing with injuries to key players including forward Devon Pryor and center Nate Bittle.

Bittle would be an especially big loss for the Ducks. He has been Oregon's leading scorer with 16.3 points per game and leading rebounder with 7.8 rebounds per game so far this season.

Bittle would be a handful for the Trojan defense, given that he stands at 7'0'' and weighs 220 pounds but also shoots 35% from three-point range.

Pryor is also a regular starter for Oregon who averages 5.2 points per game. Both players' availability will impact this game massively.

Jaden Brownell: the X-factor?

Jaden Brownell had an absolutely incredible game against Arizona State in the Maui Invitational championship. He scored 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting and made 3 huge 3 pointers for the Trojans. He also pulled down 1 rebound.

Brownell, who averages only 7.4 minutes per game for USC, was somewhat of an unlikely hero. But did his performance in USC's biggest win of the year merit more minutes, especially if Rodney Rice is out? We'll find out against Oregon -- and then if he gets an expanded opportunity, can he keep it?

This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC men's basketball takes on Oregon Ducks in Eugene