In late-game, fine-margin moments, USC men’s basketball has struggled to elevate, much to the frustration of Trojan fans and their head coach, Eric Musselman.
“We’ve got to play better at home,” Musselman said to begin his press conference after USC’s 82-76 loss to UCLA on Monday night at Galen Center.
The defeat exposed some deficiencies that the team will hope to fix in the short term — namely, a lack of clutch free-throw shooting — while Musselman also acknowledged the huge contrast in the two teams’ roster construction. Many of UCLA’s key contributors have spent multiple seasons in the program. At the other end of the continuity spectrum, none of the eight players who earned minutes for USC against the Bruins played for Trojans in 2023-24.
UCLA’s returners accounted for 44 of the team’s 82 points and their time spent in Westwood arguably matters even more on the defensive end, where UCLA head coach Mick Cronin has instilled a hard-nosed, physical mentality that routinely frustrated USC’s ball handlers.
Musselman hasn’t had the same opportunity to develop a culture at USC that’s apparent and one the Trojans can force on opponents. Admittedly, he’s also had unfortunate luck with injuries that has shrunk the Trojans’ rotation. Both graduate forward Matt Knowling and graduate forward Terrance Williams II had started multiple games before suffering season-wrecking injuries.
Against UCLA, Musselman gave minutes to just eight players, two of whom played fewer than 10 minutes, whereas no one in UCLA’s nine-man rotation spent fewer than 11 minutes in the game. That disparity in solid depth isn’t making Musselman’s life any easier.
USC fans will understandably sulk following the loss to UCLA. The Trojans fell to 4-5 in Big Ten play while UCLA improved to 6-4, and the Muss Bus feels sluggish coming out of the gate. But a high-profile rivalry game also provided a stage for redshirt freshman guard Wesley Yates III to prove once again why Musselman should make him a foundational piece of this challenging rebuild.
When asked about selling recruits on a vision for the program amid difficult results, Musselman highlighted his team’s effort.
“I hope anyone that came to tonight’s game or anyone that watched would say, ‘Wow, in year one, they’re battling and competing,’” Musselman said. “We’ll see where we are in five years. Hopefully, I’m still sitting here and we have a team that can play in Sweet Sixteens.”
If Musselman will still be here in five years time — and I certainly wouldn’t bet against his track record — it would behoove him to show the utmost faith in Yates III. Williams II’s injury might have prompted his promotion to a starting role, but Yates III has taken the opportunity and blossomed.
Since becoming a starter in early December, Yates III has averaged 14.9 points per game and 51% from the field while also showing energy on the defensive end with 1.5 steals per game over this 11-game stretch. His 3-point shot needs to fall more consistently, as he currently averages 31.8% from beyond the arc, but he does have hot shooting nights from distance semi-regularly, including against UCLA — another positive sign for his development. Yates III made four of USC’s 11 3-pointers, a necessity for USC to keep the game close down the stretch.
Yates III and USC’s other guards, namely junior Desmond Claude, had fewer driving lanes against UCLA than they’re able to find most nights, but when an opening did appear, Yates III punished UCLA. With under two minutes left in the game, the score 73-71 in UCLA’s favor, the former Washington Husky showed tremendous bounce to get into the paint, where he found four UCLA players collapsing towards him to try and swipe the ball. His aggression drew a foul from senior guard and former Trojan Kobe Johnson, who fouled out on that play in his return to Galen, much to the home crowd’s delight.
With that drive, it seemed like Yates III may have put USC in a position to win the basketball game and cap off an impressive comeback after being down by as many as 12 points in the second half. Then, much like the program around him, Yates III showed he still has room to grow, when he missed one of the two ensuing free throws that could’ve tied the game. From there, UCLA sophomore guard Sebastian Mack hit an impressive pull-up three and the game slipped away from the Trojans.
But with a more balanced, deeper roster around him and time for Musselman to keep forging a high-effort identity in South Central, Yates III will win USC games.
As college sports have shifted towards what is effectively a year-to-year free agency model, roster building has grown increasingly fickle. But Yates III is worth whatever (financial) support it takes to keep him at USC, and he has the potential to be a true star in cardinal and gold.