BYU basketball had already confirmed it would be playing in the Legends Classic. Now the Cougars know their first opponent in the four-team tournament.
BYU will face the Pac-12’s USC on Dec. 1 at 12:30 p.m. MST at Mohegan Sun casino and resort in Uncasville, Connecticut, in the opening game of the event, followed by the other semifinal matchup between UConn and Vanderbilt.
The semifinals winners will play in the championship game at 5 p.m. on Dec. 3, with the semifinal losers matching up in a consolation game at 7:30 p.m. that same night.
The Cougars are coming off a 24-8 season under Mark Pope in his first season coaching the Cougars. The Trojans, meanwhile, went 22-9 last year under eighth-year head coach Andy Enfield. BYU and USC last met in 2016, when the Trojans beat the Cougars 91-84 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Details are still coming together for BYU’s nonconference schedule in the upcoming season — Pope told reporters this week he’s hopeful of having the schedule finalized “by next Thursday.” In addition to the Legends Classic, UVU has announced it will play BYU on Nov. 28 in Provo.