The WSU men’s basketball team returns to the road as it gets ready to take on the USC Trojans Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. The Trojans, led by first-year Head Coach Kevin O’Neill, are currently tied for second place in the Pac-10 with a 3-2 conference record and are 11-6 overall.

The team is led by senior guard Dwight Lewis, who is averaging almost 14 points per game, and sophomore forward Nikola Vucevic, who is averaging more than 12 points and nine rebounds per contest. Combined, the two are the only players on the USC roster who have played and started in all of USC’s 17 games. The Cougars were swept by the Trojans last season. During his tele-conference Tuesday morning, Head Coach Ken Bone said USC is a force to be reckoned with.

“(Coach Kevin O’Neill) has them playing together as a group so much better than before Christmas,” Bone said. “They’re physical, athletic and quick. They’re really solid on both ends of the court.” As for WSU, the team is coming off an exciting 77-73 victory over Stanford and will look to translate that momentum against the Trojans on Thursday and UCLA on Saturday. Following the team’s win over the Cardinal, Bone said he was going to look into mixing up the starting lineup, and on Tuesday, he explained he wasn’t sure if a change would be made.

“My guess is we won’t make a change, but there definitely is a chance,” Bone said. “There are certain segments of the game we need to get better at.” Some of those changes could include freshman guard Xavier Thames and/or lone senior guard Nikola Koprivica. Koprivica is averaging 8.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and more than 22 minutes per game.

“I think there are some kids who are more comfortable coming off the bench,” Bone said. “Nik might be that guy, but I have not had that conversation with him.” Following the team’s showdown with the Trojans, the Cougars will stay in California to take on the UCLA Bruins Saturday at 1 p.m, which is scheduled to be televised by Fox Sports Net.

The Bruins are currently dead last in the Pac-10 standings with a 2-3 conference mark and 7-10 overall. Led by sophomore Malcolm Lee and senior Michael Roll, who is averaging more than 13 points, UCLA has dropped its last two conference games against Stanford and USC.

With the Cougars’ next three games on the road, and the team sitting near the top of the standings, Bone said this next week will be crucial.

“Hopefully, we can knock off a team or two,” he said. “I think these three games will tell a lot about where we are as a program.”