My husband Jim and I brought two of our four grandsons to the USC Men's Basketball Preview on the second floor of the Galen Center. My nine year old grandson Parker, who lives up north in San Mateo, watched the entire practice. Sometimes his dad takes him to see a Golden State Warrior's game. His five year old brother, Bowman, ran around playing in the adjacent practice court. All Galen Center Founders who buy season tickets were invited.
The practice was a hard fought scrimmage, teammates vs teammates. It lasted about an hour. There were refreshments for the Founders.
After the practice ended, "Trojan Talk's" Jordan Moore started the program. He introduced Men's Basketball Head Coach Andy Enfield. Coach Enfield introduced our 2018-2019 USC Men's Basketball Team by their class.
After the program ended, Trojan Candy did what she always does, take pictures! The first picture I took was of one of our new players. Junior guard McKay Anderson, who played at Southern Utah and is red-shirting this season, posed with my grandsons Bowman and Parker.
Next I did what I always do.... I interviewed him. McKay told me that he just got married this past weekend! Congratulations Casey and McKay! McKay said that he lived in Boston in 2014-2016 and still misses Boston. However, he is a Dodger fan now!. His major is International Relations Global Business. His minor is Mandarin Chinese. McKay is already fluent in Mandarin! He has many hobbies...reading, golfing, playing outdoor sports and snowboarding. Mckay's favorite movie is the "Shawshank Redemption." He volunteers at his church services every week. FIGHT ON, McKay!
Next, Trojan Candy interviewed Freshman guard Kevin Porter Jr., who is from South Seattle, Washington. After graduating from Rainier Beach High, Kevin was voted the #1 player in the state of Washington! Thank goodness he chose USC! Kevin told me that he was injured a little bit now. Hopefully, he will play soon. Kevin is majoring in Communication. His hobby is basketball! Kevin's favorite food is macaroni. His favorite music artist is Lil Baby. FIGHT ON, Kevin!
Derryck Thornton joined Kevin for this picture.
As I took the picture of Kevin and Derryck, Trojan Candy noticed a young man and a coach watching nearby. USC Director of Scouting Martin Bahar introduced Mason Leib to me. Mason is a Senior Manager on the team. So nice to meet you, Mason. Coach Bahar told Mason that he likes my blog. Thank you, Coach Bahar! FIGHT ON, Mason! FIGHT ON, Coach Bahar!
There was one more friend to visit with. Senior Bennie Boatwright (8/28/2015) always has a big smile on his face. I asked Bennie when is he going to be able to play. He said, "Soon." Trojan Candy sure hopes so! For some reason, I was having trouble with my flash. Bennie was patient enough to let me take several pictures until my flash worked.
What a cute picture of Bennie with my grandsons Parker and Bowman. FIGHT ON, Bennie!
What an exciting afternoon!
FIGHT ON, USC Men's Basketball!
After the tailgate, we walked over to the Coliseum, browsed around the Fan Fest area, and then entered the stadium.