USC announced Sunday that forward Chad Baker-Mazara, the Trojans' leading scorer, is no longer with the men's basketball program.
Baker-Mazara exited Saturday's home loss to No. 12 Nebraska early in the second half after a hard fall while blocking a shot. He told coach Eric Musselman he could not return to the game and was seen sitting near injured teammate Rodney Rice in a fan area rather than on the team bench. USC's brief statement gave no reason or additional details about his departure; the school's spokesperson said they had nothing further to add.
Musselman said after the game that Baker-Mazara told him he could not go back in and that he had not yet spoken with an athletic trainer about the player's condition. He also explained that Baker-Mazara was sitting near fans because there was a shortage of chairs on the bench.
A 26-year-old graduate student, Baker-Mazara arrived at USC last spring after several stops in his college career. He initially committed to Duquesne out of SPIRE Academy (Ohio), transferred to San Diego State for a season, spent a year at Northwest Florida State (a junior college), and then played two seasons at Auburn, where he started 43 games and avera
