USC has been in the midst of one its roughest stretches of the season so far.
Heading into Tuesday night’s matchup against the Penn State Nittany Lions, the Trojans had lost four of their last six games. However, USC was able to get back on track with a victory against Penn State.
“This was a must-win for us,” head coach Eric Musselman said. “I think everyone understood the importance of the game with the travel we have and it was a compact day with guys getting rehab.”
The Trojans wasted no time early as USC won the opening tip and senior forward Saint Thomas drove the ball hard to the basket and laid the ball in. Following an aggressive start, the next few minutes of the first half were not as smooth.
After Thomas’ layup, USC committed turnovers on three straight offensive possessions. The Trojans’ offense eventually got back on track after junior guard Desmond Claude scored his first basket of the night to put the Trojans up 5-4. Claude’s layup was his first basket after missing the last two games with a knee bruise. His return was critical for the Trojans, as Claude’s 16.2 points per game on the season lead the team.
“I felt like I was able to play and I wanted to play,” Claude said. “We got a good support staff and we did everything we could to try and get everybody back on the court.”
The game remained close throughout most of the first half, but USC began to pick up its intensity on both ends of the floor. With 10:53 left in the first half, graduate guard Chibuzo Agbo nailed a 3-pointer to put the Trojans up 21-13. This proved to be a sign of things to come for Agbo, who was red-hot from behind the arc all night as he finished 7-for-9 from 3-point range.
Agbo’s three was the last basket scored before USC went on a 10-1 run to take a 31-14 lead with 7:40 left in the first half. When it looked like the Trojans would have this game all but wrapped up at halftime, the Nittany Lions rattled off a 15-5 run to cut the deficit to seven with 1:11 remaining in the first half. Despite the late first half rally from Penn State, USC was able to take a 40-31 lead into the halftime locker room.
The second half of the game was when USC was able to establish its dominance over Penn State. Agbo opened the half with another made 3-pointer and the Trojans never looked back. USC was able to keep its lead at double digits from the 16:40 mark until the end of the game.
“We knew this was a very important game,” Claude said. “We had to dig deep within ourselves and really lock in to try to get this one.”
In the second half, the Trojans led by as many as 26 as Penn State was never able to make any significant second half push. USC cruised to a 92-67 victory and ended up playing one of its most efficient games of the season.
The Trojans shot 67% from the field and 75% from the 3-point line. Agbo led the way for USC with 21 points, and his performance comes after being questionable with an illness essentially until gametime.
“It was a game I’ll remember for a while,” Musselman said. “We were so unsure of what was going on and we were practicing without three starters. It was a weird couple of days.”
In Claude’s first game back, he finished with 16 points and only missed one shot from the field. Claude’s status for the game was also up in the air with an illness. Even though Claude had an efficient shooting night, his rust was evident as he also contributed eight turnovers, but received around the clock treatment to get back on the court.
On offense, the Trojans found success scoring the ball in the paint, and graduate forward Josh Cohen was critical in that area. Cohen had 12 points, scoring in double figures for the first time since the Trojans’ victory against Southern University in December. Cohen was also able to draw eight fouls and foul out junior forward Yanic Konan Niederhauser, the Big Ten’s leader in shot blocks per game this season.
“I’m just trying to be an everyday guy and help the team any way I can,” Cohen said. “I’m going to try to continue that for the rest of the year and keep playing as hard as I can.”
USC welcomes Minnesota to the Galen Center on Saturday at 1 p.m. to end a two-game homestand.