USC announces Chad Baker-Mazara no longer member of basketball program

USC announced small forward Chad Baker-Mazara is no longer a member of the Trojans men’s basketball team in a release Sunday afternoon. Baker-Mazara transferred from Auburn this past offseason.

The 6-foot-7 Baker-Mazara appeared is 26 games for the Trojans this season, averaging a team-leading 18.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists. He played as recently as Saturday’s 82-67 loss to Nebraska, scoring 14 points in 19 minutes of action, but refused to return after a hard foul early in the second half.

According to ESPN, Baker-Mazara left the floor early after getting fouled following a block of the Cornhuskers’ Pryce Sandfort. He reportedly told Musselman he couldn’t go back in and sat with injured USC star Rodney Rice in a second designated for fans and not at the end of the bench. Baker-Mazara emerged as the Trojans’ top offensive threat after Rice went down with a season-ending shoulder injury in late November, contributing career-best numbers in scoring, rebounding and assists at USC.

The timing of USC’s announcement is interesting with two games remaining in the regular-season for the Trojans (18-11, 7-11 Big Ten), who are in the midst of a five-game losing streak. Given its struggles of late, USC is currently considered a potential bubble team for the 2026 NCAA Tournament with upcoming games against Washington and rival UCLA ahead before the Big Ten Tournament in two weeks.

Baker-Mazara was a key piece of Auburn’s success the past two seasons, including leading the Tigers with 18 points in last season’s Final Four loss to eventual national champion Florida. As a senior, Baker-Mazara started 34 of Auburn’s 38 games in 2024-25, averaging 12.3 points, 3 rebounds and 3.6 assists last season. The year before, he started nine of Auburn’s 35 games and ranked third on the team averaging 10 points and 3.7 rebounds per game in 2023-24.