Coming off a sluggish season-opening setback, USC looks to regroup at home Thursday in Los Angeles when it hosts Alabama State.

The Trojans (0-1) went through multiple, lengthy scoring droughts in Monday’s 74-61 loss to coach Andy Enfield’s former team, Florida Gulf Coast. A stretch lasting more than eight minutes without USC managing a field goal proved to be the difference in the lopsided defeat.

“They have to score,” Enfield said in his postgame press conference. “Our big guys did their job tonight, but we have to be able to make plays for each other on the offensive end.”

Chief among USC’s offensive struggles was its inability to shoot the 3-pointer. The Trojans had just one successful attempt from deep until late in the second half and finished 3-of-19.

USC aims to rebound facing an opponent that struggled as much defensively in its opener as the Trojans struggled offensively.

Alabama State (0-1) gave up more than 42 percent shooting from beyond the arc and more than 58 percent from inside it in the Hornets’ 111-70 loss to UAB on Monday.

The blowout defeat marked the debut of first-year Alabama State head coach Tony Madlock. Madlock spent last season at South Carolina State after a stint as an assistant to Penny Hardaway at Memphis.

Along with a new coach, Alabama State tipped off 2022-23 with a largely new-look roster featuring a bevy of transfers and freshmen.

“Before I stepped on campus, I had 10 guys from the former team that jumped into the transfer portal,” Madlock told Sports Illustrated’s HBCU Legends. “You know how that works. I basically got a brand-new team.”

Among the newcomers is the coach’s son, TJ Madlock, who followed his dad from South Carolina State. TJ Madlock scored 25 points in his Alabama State debut. Alex Anderson, a transfer from South Alabama, debuted with eight points, five assists and a steal.

–Field Level Media

Bellarmine senior Garrett Tipton scored a game-high 21 points and the Knights held on for a season-opening 67-66 victory over host Louisville on Wednesday after the Cardinals missed two jump shots in the final seconds.

Tipton, who scored 12 second-half points, shot 9-for-16 from the field, while Bash Wieland made 11 of his 12 free-throw attempts to finish with 13 points.

Bellarmine earned its first win over a Power 5 school since joining Division I two years ago.

Ben Johnson scored eight points by sinking both his 3-point attempts and adding a pair of free throws, while Langdon Hatton and Alec Pfriem each added seven points apiece for the Knights.

Louisville, which trailed by 12 with 4:41 remaining, was led by Jae’Lyn Withers’ 17 points, while Mike James added 16 points. El Ellis had 14 points and five assists, and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield recorded nine points and 10 rebounds.

After mustering just 10 first-half field goals to trail 41-30 at halftime, the Cardinals opened the second half by making six of their first 10 shots during a 16-9 run to pull to within 50-46 following Ellis’ layup with 12:57 remaining.

The Cardinals maintained their momentum and got to within 59-55 on Kamari Lands’ two free throws with 6:41 to go.

However, Tipton hit two free throws and followed with a layup, a fall-away jumper and a layup on consecutive possession to stretch the lead to 67-55 with 4:41 left.

Louisville made its final push by going on an 11-0 run to pull to within 67-66 on James’ 3-pointer with 1:02 remaining. Ellis missed the front end of a one-and-one with 43 seconds left that would have tied the game.

After a Bellarmine turnover with 27.3 seconds left, Lands missed a baseline jumper with eight seconds left and Roosevelt Wheeler’s follow from close range clanged off the rim with four seconds to play.

Bellarmine shot 21 of 43 (48.8 percent) from the field, including 7 of 15 (46.7 percent) from beyond the arc, and scored 16 points off Louisville’s 13 turnovers.

Louisville outrebounded the Knights 32-26 but shot 22 of 52 (42.3 percent) from the field and 11 of 28 (39.3 percent) from 3-point range.

–Field Level Media

Adam Miller scored 18 points and KJ Williams had a double-double as LSU defeated Kansas City 74-63 in its season opener Wednesday night in Baton Rouge, La.

Miller and Williams were both making their Tigers debuts in Matt McMahon’s first game as head coach. Miller missed all of last season due to injury after transferring from Illinois. Williams, who finished with 13 points and 14 rebounds, is the reigning Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year who followed McMahon from Murray State. Justice Hill added 13 points.

Shemarri Allen scored 19 points and Rayquawndis Mitchell added 15 to lead the Roos, who lost their second straight under first-year head coach Marvin Menzies.

Miller started the second-half scoring with a jumper, and added a 3-pointer between two dunks by Johnson for a 50-38 Tigers lead.

The Roos made just two field goals during the first five minutes following the break, but crept within 63-54 on Allen’s 3-pointer midway through the half.

LSU’s Trae Hannibal scored the next three points, but a 7-0 run pulled Kansas City within 66-61.

Derek Fountain made two free throws to end the Tigers’ 4 1/2-minute scoring drought and he added a dunk for a 70-61 lead with less than five minutes remaining.

The Roos made just one field goal in the final 7 1/2 minutes.

Mwani Wilkinson, the most prominent hold-over from last year’s Tigers team, began the scoring by making a 3-pointer and added another for a 12-4 lead.

Allen David Mukeba Jr. made a 3-pointer to pull Kansas City within 15-12, but the Tigers rebuilt the lead to nine on a layup by Justice Williams.

Mukeba’s layup got the Roos within 25-22, but LSU increased the lead to 34-25 on a jumper by Hill.

Kansas City crept within 34-32 on a layup by Precious Idiaru, but Hill made two free throws and hit a 3-pointer down the stretch as the Tigers took a 41-34 halftime lead.

–Field Level Media

Tray Jackson posted 12 points and five rebounds off the bench, freshman Tae Davis had 11 points and eight rebounds and Seton Hall stomped Monmouth 79-52 in both teams’ season opener Wednesday in Newark, N.J.

The Pirates (1-0) used a 15-0 run late in the first half to create plenty of separation from their New Jersey foes. Seton Hall shot 45.3 percent as a team while Monmouth (0-1) finished just 29.8 percent from the floor.

Tyrese Samuel had 11 points and five rebounds for Seton Hall. Clemson transfer Al-Amir Dawes added 10, as all 10 players in Seton Hall’s main rotation finished with at least two points.

It marked Shaheen Holloway’s debut as head coach of his alma mater after guiding Saint Peter’s to the Elite Eight last March.

Monmouth forward Myles Foster led all players with 18 points (13 in the second half) and 15 rebounds. Both were career highs. Nine of his boards came from the offensive glass as he helped Monmouth outrebound Seton Hall in the first half, 26-19.

The Hawks lost 18 of their 23 total turnovers during the first half and shot 2 for 20 from 3-point range.

Tahron Allen drove for two layups to bring Monmouth within 20-15 with 7:49 left in the first half. Jackson responded by making a layup and foul shot, then converted a steal into a fast-break dunk — the first five points of Seton Hall’s 15-0 run. Saint Peter’s transfer KC Ndefo contributed a dunk during the extended stretch.

The Pirates led 36-17 at intermission. Monmouth shot just 5 of 29 from the floor before halftime and didn’t make a field goal for the final 7:49.

Foster led Monmouth out of halftime with an early layup to break the field goal drought, and a later bucket kept the Hawks within 46-27.

Seton Hall answered with a quick 10-0 run thanks to 3-pointers by Jamir Harris and Dawes and two layups from freshman Tae Davis. That gave Seton Hall a 29-point lead, and they would lead by as many as 30 in the final minutes.

–Field Level Media