**1:56 p.m.**: Well, Bill Self certainly didn’t paint a pretty picture after the game, and it was probably a good thing he avoided doing so. Despite coming away with a win in what will probably wind up being the Jayhawks’ toughest non-conference challenge, there’s _still_ plenty to work on.KU’s shot selection wasn’t very choice, the Jayhawks had six assists to 22 turnovers and Self pointed out his team’s mental state being a bit of a setback early in the game.But still, it was a win. And anytime your team wins on the road against an NCAA Tournament-caliber club while shooting just 37.9 percent from the floor, it’ll still be a nice trip back home.On to the positives, because, yes, there were some…**-The Jayhawks rebounded well**, outdoing USC on the glass 42-30. Of those boards, 14 were of the offensive variety, which created plenty of extra possessions late in the game. Darnell Jackson was a beast on the glass, with a career-high in grabs with 13.**-Mario Chalmers rebounded from a first half** in which he was 1-of-5 from the floor with three points, and finished with 20 points, inlcuding the game’s biggest shot – a three-pointer to seal the deal with less than 10 seconds to play. He was all kinds of active, attacking passing lanes and pushing the ball when given chances to. He was 5-of-6 from the floor in the game’s final 20 minutes.**-The Jayhawks were careful in not throwing too much praise on O.J. Mayo**, in saying that he’s a great player who can get a shot whenever he wants. But they didn’t compliment his showing today too much. And with good reason. The all-world freshman had an off-day and still finished with 19 points, but they were pedestrian for the most part. He was just 6-of-21 from the field and looked sloppy. KU’s depth wore USC’s star power down, just as the Jayhawks did a week ago against Arizona. It’s going to take a team with depth just like KU’s (i.e. North Carolina, UCLA, Memphis etc…) to give the Jayhawks a real run.This was a good, quality win for KU, and sets the Jayhawks up perfectly to run now through the non-conference schedule unscathed before the Big 12 opener on Jan. 12 in Lincoln, Neb.I’ll talk to you guys later tonight, possibly, after KU’s bowl destination is announced. See you then. It’s been real.**12:24 p.m.**: Wow. What a shot by Chalmers, who has without question been KU’s best asset today with 19 points and just now the most clutch three he’s ever hit in a regular season game (still doesn’t top the one against Texas in last year’s Big 12 Tournament title game).Go figure he has a great game, after gushing about USC following Wednesday’s game, voluntarily talking about how much he wanted to go against O.J. Mayo and see his team do well against the phenom.I’ll be back in a bit with postgame nuggets.**12:43 p.m.**: USC looked for a second like it was orchestrating a hack-a-Shaq technique on Sasha Kaun, but the senior big man hit one of two, making him a pleasing 3-of-4 from the line on the day. Kaun then sat down in place of Darrell Arthur, who has 10 points and four fouls. A better free throw option, but not by much.**12:37 p.m.**: KU is finally looking like the team that wants to take this game, as it’s hung in the balance all afternoon. Mario Chalmers has been huge in the second half, as he leads KU with 13 points and has been a stop-gap defensively.O.J. Mayo’s still forcing things, and his 17 points have been very pedestrian, which is the way KU needs to keep things. His passing has been sensational, though, when he’s decided to. Gotta give him credit there.The KU fans in the end zone above us are making unbelievable noise during timeouts. It’s almost become a neutral floor.**11:55 a.m.**: Some first half observations…**-The crowd has not played as big of a role as I would have thought**. The crowd was late-arriving, and even late, the place still isn’t filled. With the game being as wishy-washy as it has been, there hasn’t been much crowd momentum. A couple of corners of the upper deck are pretty open. Then again, it’s pretty early on a Sunday morning here.**-This is the perfect for KU to be going against when** the shots just aren’t falling. The Jayhawks have shot just 34.4 percent from the floor, but the Trojans haven’t burned up the nets either, firing at just a 37 percent clip. O.J. Mayo has forced some shots that he shouldn’t have taken, and the USC guards have missed some bunnies while cutting to the basket. The next big run in this game could be the decider.**-USC sophomore big man Taj Gibson**, who was awesome last year in Allen Fieldhouse, has been non-existent today. He’s got no points and two fouls. Tim Floyd took a big risk late in the first half, playing Gibson and Davon Jefferson – his two best big men – for the half’s final seven minutes with both havin g two personals. Fortunately for SC, neither picked up No. 3 before the half.**-USC’s students haven’t let up on Rodrick Stewart yet**, as he’s had to hear the ‘Lod-rick’s bet-ter’ chant everytime he’s touched the ball. Then again, they went in to a rousing rendition of ‘U-C-L-A Sucks’ at the half during one of the band’s tunes. So they’re just rough on everyone, I guess.**-KU’s gotta get more comfortable with the three**, because USC doesn’t appear to have anyone who can shoot it consistently. Mario Chalmers’ threes have looked flat, and he’s missed a couple of them pretty short. I’m proclaiming him as the key for KU in the second half.**11:39 a.m.**: KU has looked tough, and wasn’t phased by a 10-point SC lead early in the first half. On top of that, USC has shown its youth, no question. O.J. Mayo has taken a couple of ill-advised shots and made some poor decisions with the ball. All KU really needs at this point is another solid outburst. One like the other night’s against Florida Atlantic, where the Jayhawks scored in a plethora of ways in a two-minute, nine-point run, would be very timely before the half or just out of it.**11:13 a.m.**: Man, very sloppy few opening minutes. USC has already turned the ball over four times, with the latest one coming from O.J. Mayo. He tried to force the issue in the lane with the SC offense struggling.But Mayo has the capability to take over a game at any point. Right out of the game’s first full timeout, he went _way_ up for two rebounds and hit a three to put USC up 5-4.**11:05 a.m.**: Well, the USC student section sure hasn’t forgotten Rodrick Stewart. After the KU senior was called for traveling on KU’s opening possession, they started chanting ‘Lodrick’s Better (clap clap clap-clap-clap).’**10:52 a.m.**: Eight minutes until tip-off, _very_ late arriving crowd. This place will be packed, no doubt. PLENTY of crimson and blue in the concourses while meandering around before the game.The most astonishing thing was when I wandered into the USC downstairs to get myself a little something. You wouldn’t believe the hords of folks non-chalantly forking over $75 for USC No. 32 jerseys (Mayo, for those of you out of the loop). Can’t blame SC for cashing in on its biggest recruit ever.Looking forward to this one. It’s gonna be nuts once this place fills.**10:18 a.m.**: Roughly 29 NBA teams are represented here today in the form of scouts. That’s almost the entire league. I would imagine that’s the case this year for most USC games, given the presence of O.J. Mayo and Davon Jefferson. KU itself carries four or five solid NBA prospects, thus the robust turnout.**9:59 a.m.**: For those of you who haven’t picked it up yet, the times of the updates here will be according to the time out here…two hours behind those of you reading out in Kansas.Anyways, just set up on press row, which is up here about 12 rows behind the goal opposite the side of the USC student section. It’s hard to think too much about the gamge just yet, because I’ll be honest – I’m completely enamored with the Galen Center. This place is absolutely gorgeous. It’s what a new arena should look like. I thought that was the case last year when visiting Mizozu Arena for the first time, but Galen has a much more intimate feeling to it. The fans are on top of the floor and it’s just beautiful. The coolest feature is up behind the student section, where a long, maroon curtain is draped along the wall. I was told there’s a huge, long window behind it that looks out on downtown Los Angeles. The T.V. folks, though, don’t want it open during games because of the glare.The two teams are now out on the floor and shooting around, and nothing appears to be out of the ordinary as far as KU is concerned. Tyrel Reed, who sat Wednesday with a sprained ankle, is sporting a brace on his right ankle and looks to be moving around just fine.I’ll talk to you again a little bit before the tip.**10:55 p.m. (Saturday)**: Well, holed up in our hotel room here, down the street from LAX, it’s been hard to remember at times tonight that the reason for the trip to Los Angeles was for a basketball game.Part of that is due to having just experienced flying while suffering from a cold for the first time (not recommended, unless you enjoy overbearing sinus pressure). But mostly it’s because yet again – and no longer surprising, at this point – the college football world was turned on its head.Absolutely nothing has gone to plan for anyone this year. And coincidentally, as mind-boggling as this season has been in terms of rankings and trying to project who’s going where come bowl season, no true college football fan would have it any other way.Saturday night was just a reminder that, despite KU losing its final regular season contest last Saturday in Arrowhead, for Jayhawk fans, it’s still not right to call it basketball season just yet.Essentially, the basketball game now has become a diversion of sorts for KU fans who would otherwise be spending all afternoon tomorrow biting nails and hammering away in the message boards leading up the 7 p.m. announcement of the five BCS matchups.Before talking about Sunday afternoon’s game, a couple of thoughts…**-After Saturday, if I could pick a matchup for the national championship**, it’d be Oklahoma and LSU. They both won their conference crowns the right way (by winning conference championship games (cough, listen up Big Ten, cough, cough) and, in my opinion, they’re college football’s two most complete teams.**-The SI jinx lives**. How would you like to be one of those Missouri fans right about now who was talking up a storm last week leading up to the Border War about how the ‘jinx’ would do the Jayhawks in? (Though I should make it clear, I was pulling for MU Saturday night over a burger and fries).**-I fully expect Ohio State** to be playing for the BCS Championship. Even though I hardly think the Buckeyes are one of college football’s two best teams, it’s hard to argue with their credentials – They’re the only BCS conference team who won its league outright with a one-loss record.**-Now since Ohio State probably moves up from No. 3 to one of the top, two spots**, if the same happens for Georgia, who was No. 4 in the BCS entering the weekend, and the Bulldogs get to play for the title, then the system is horribly flawed. Though I think LSU will…and should…jump them.**-The biggest egg of the weekend was without question laid by West Virginia**, who not only lost to a 4-7 (entering the game) Pittsburgh team, but a 4-7 Pittsburge team coached by Dave Wannstedt (sorry, just the disgruntled die-hard Bears fan in my seeping out a bit). The most eye-popping storyline from this one, though, was Steve Slaton’s stat line – 9 carries, 9 yards. He’s been held under 100 yards in six of his last eight games, now. Stay in school, young fella.**-I think KU will end up with a Fiesta Bowl bid against Oklahoma**, which obviously would be a huge step for the program. But honestly, I don’t think anyone should be all that disappointed if KU gets the BCS snub, because that means the Cotton Bowl is a likely destination, and the Jayhawks would get a chance to prove themselves against SEC competition, such as maybe Tennessee.Personally, I’d rather see KU vs. the SEC. While there’s much more money on the line for the Jayhawks with a BCS berth, what’s the fun in going to a bowl game against a team from your own conference unless it’s for the BCS crown? Besides, you can see KU-OU 10 months from now, anyway.**As far as the KU-USC game goes**, I thought one of the most interesting things to hear all week was Mario Chalmers, normally a very reserved guy, letting down his guard a bit after Wednesday’s win over Florida Atlantic. As if KU doesn’t already carry a big enough name and reputation in the college basketball world, he openly admitted that going against O.J. Mayo provides the Jayhawks with an opportunity to make an even bigger name for themselves should they be able to slow down the highly-touted frosh guard.Talking with Tom Keegan, though, who was at Thursday’s Oklahoma-USC game, freshman forward Davon Jefferson, who at one point awhile back was on KU’s recruiting radar, is one to watch just as closely. An explosive forward who creates plenty of matchup headaches for opposing coaches, it sounds like it’ll be the dynamic duo against the balanced machine.Going into the KU-Arizona game a week ago, I thought KU would win a similar matchup easily, with the ‘Cats boasting just two high-powered weapons on offense in Chase Budinger and Jerryd Bayless. But that game turned out to be closer than many expected.This will without question, too, be one of the biggest games played to date in the Galen Center, USC’s home arena in just its second season of use. With a national TV audience tuned in, as well, that could be a great equalizer.Anyways, I’m gonna hit the hay. Talk to you all from the arena in the morning. Peace.
