The men’s basketball team will play in the Gildan Charleston Classic in Charleston, South Carolina today. The games will begin on Thursday, Nov. 20, versus Southern California and Friday and Sunday versus teams yet to be determined.

Thursday will mark the first matchup between USC and UA and also the first time UA has competed in this particular tournament. The Trojans enter the game with a record of 1-1, coming off a win against Tennessee on Sunday and a home loss to Portland State on Friday. In the history of the school, Akron holds a 2-3 victory over PAC 12 schools where USC is affiliated with. Those victories include wins over Oregon State and Arizona State.

With the first two games completed, USC has two players averaging double figure scoring. The Zips need to keep an eye out for Jordan McLaughlin, who has averaged 17.0 ppg and Katin Reinhardt, with an average of 15.0 ppg. On the defensive end, both Darion Clark and Julian Jacobs lead the team with 6.0 rebounds per game.

Under Coach Dambrot, the Zips hold a regular season tournament record of 16-13. Overall, Akron has posted a 6-5 record versus teams from California, with only two of those occurring within the CA borders.

If Akron wins on Thursday, they will play the winner of Miami (FL)/Drexel at 2:30 p.m. on Friday. If they lose, they will play the loser of this matchup at 12 p.m. on Friday. Other members in the tournament include Penn State, Charlotte, South Carolina and Cornell.

Tune into ESPN3 or the webcast on gozips.com to see the team in action on Thursday at 12:30 p.m.