We’re halfway there, and thank goodness. 2012 couldn’t end soon enough for USC Basketball. The Trojans went just 1-16 after New Year’s last season, and ended this season’s non-conference slate with a 5-8 record, the only team in the Pac-12 to enter conference play with a losing record. USC heads into 2013 on a high note after eking out an overtime victory over Dayton on Sunday, but needs rapid improvement in order to be competitive in Pac-12 play and salvage their season. Here are some important observations about the squad so far. 

Eric Wise is This Team’s Best Player

He’s not flashy. He won’t break any ankles with his crossover or sky through the air for a rim-shaking dunk, but one of the Trojans’ less-hyped additions has turned out to be the USC’s most consistent performer. 

Wise is a reliable jump shooter that has shown a three-point touch in the last few games, and an aggressive rebounder that positions himself well to pull down boards despite his 6-foot-6-inch size. Best of all, the U.C. Irvine transfer avoids the ill-advised shots and careless plays that plague his teammates (his ejection against Dayton aside). 

He leads the Trojans with 11.4 points per game while averaging 4.6 rebounds per contest, and is the only Trojan to score five or more points in every game. He’s also second on the team in field goal percentage at nearly 56 percent, and is even 10 for 18 from beyond the three point line. The Trojans’ poor shooting and turnover-happy playing style is the reason for their struggles, but don’t point the blame at Wise. 

Defense Can Only Get A Team So Far

Coach Kevin O’Neill said before the season that defense would be one of this team’s notable strengths. He failed to mention how much of a struggle offense would become. 

The Trojans are shooting just 41.7 percent from the field, but the structure of the offense is more to blame. Despite having two seven-footers, the Trojans too often leave the ball in the hands of point guard Jio Fontan and rely heavily on him to drive to the basket. Fontan can’t hit every triple-teamed, flying shot he takes, and needs his teammates to cut to the basket more as well as get in position for open looks on the perimeter.  

Byron Wesley needs to cut down on his poor passes as well, and coach O’Neill needs to find ways to make the Trojan big men more active in the offense play sets. O’Neill is a defensive-minded coach and this team among the better teams in the Pac-12 at locking down their opponents, but scoring isn’t going to get any easier as the day-in and day-out rigors of conference play begin. 

Dewayne Dedmon is Getting There…Slowly

The hype for the raw, athletic seven-footer was through the roof last season, and being featured in Sports Illustrated didn’t help to curb the mania. His game is nowhere near NBA-ready, but there is reason to be excited. In his second season at USC, and third in organized basketball, Dedmon is doing the small things right and looking a lot less lost on the court than he did last season. 

He’s blocking shots (nearly two per game), leads the team with 7.1 rebounds per game, and is becoming a defensive menace in the paint. He and Omar Oraby (7’2”) absorb any opposing guards that drive into the lane when the pair is on the court together, and is showing an improved ability to run the floor as well. I still look away whenever Dedmon takes a jump shot, but he is establishing himself as a big man to be reckoned with.  

A Pair of Touted Transfers Need to Wake Up

The excitement over a pair of transfers from Wake Forest, J.T. Terrell and Ari Stewart, has certainly disappeared. 

Stewart was expected to provide a defensive boost, a three-point threat and use his exceptional athleticism to give O’Neill another option in the offense. Instead, he’s played nine minutes a game, and just 15 minutes over the Trojans’ last seven games. There might be some hidden off-the-court issues with Stewart, and right now he’s not in the nine-man rotation. Stewart has to fight for every minute he gets, and is being under-utilized as a good shooter on a team struggling to score. 

Stewart hasn’t played enough to impact the Trojans on the court, but unfortunately J.T. Terrell has. The Trojans’ second-leading scorer is shooting under 30 percent on the year. His only game where he made over half of his shots was against U.C. Riverside, where he went two-for-two in his only minute of playing time, long after the game had been decided. 

Terrell has a deadly shooting touch (which can be seen in practice), but is settling for off-balance jump shots or contested threes, neither of which he’s found much luck taking. He doesn’t contribute much when he’s playing off the ball, and his defensive effort leaves much to be desired. He was benched four games ago, and will need to start finding the bottom of the net in order to earn back his starting spot. 

We Need More of Omar Oraby

Now that coach O’Neill has overcome his fear of heights and played the Rice transfer next to fellow seven-footer Dedmon, USC offers an interior defense combo that no one in the conference can match. But while Dedmon is still green on the offensive end, Oraby has a nose for the basket and puts himself in great position for entry passes in the paint. 

Declared eligible the day before the season opener, the Egyptian product is shooting over 60 percent and has perfected the art of crashing into the paint and banking the ball off the top of the backboard. Foul trouble and conditioning are issues, but Oraby has played over 20 minutes in a game just twice, averaging 15.3 minutes per game. This needs to change. Oraby shouldn’t play for 10 or 15 minute stretches, but has shown more than just flashes of becoming a dangerous scoring threat on the block and deserves to see more action in the second half of the season.

Read more of Neon Tommy's USC Basketball coverage here.

Reach Associate Sports Editor Jacob Freedman here or follow him on Twitter.