In the last week of sports at USC, the Trojans picked up a win against Rutgers in men’s basketball but also dropped a loss against Cal State Fullerton in baseball. However, the Trojans have produced some great highlights throughout their matchups. Here are, for my money, the five best.
1. Volodymyr Iakubenko hits a tweener in winning rally
Winning the game for your team is one thing, but making a viewer rethink what is possible in the sport has to earn you the No. 1 spot. That’s what landed sophomore Volodymyr Iakubenko at the top spot when he hit one of the toughest shots in tennis, a tweener, to keep alive and then win the final rally of the match. Iakubenko pulled out this incredibly difficult move in a match tiebreak to give him the win 10-6. A tweener shot is already one of the most difficult shots to pull off, but to be able to do it in a match tiebreak, it just has to be the best highlight this week.
2. Desmond Claude’s layup sends the Trojans to overtime
It was very tough to put this play at No. 2, but I stand by my decision. Junior guard Desmond Claude kept the Trojans alive in the Big Ten Tournament, hitting an off-balance layup to tie up the game at 73 apiece with just 8.8 seconds remaining against Rutgers. These are the moments — losing with 10 seconds left in a win-or-go-home game — that show what players are truly made of. Claude showed exactly the type of player he was on Wednesday night. However, even though it was crunch time, a layup can’t be put over the play at the No. 1 spot.
3. JuJu Watkins’ dagger and-one against Michigan
Landing at third is sophomore guard JuJu Watkins, who killed the hopes of Michigan when she took on nearly the entire defense to hit the and-one dagger and solidify the win for the Trojans. Within the final minute, Watkins blew by the double team at the top of the key and took on not one, but two help defenders and still dropped the layup to go with the foul. I mean, these are the kind of plays that superstars make. Taking on two defenders late in the game and making them look helpless,and also taking it to the paint herself against the rest of the team is just incredible. The shot and free throw put USC up 11 with less than a minute remaining, putting a dagger through the heart of the Wolverines.
4. Wesley Yates III pull-up 3-pointer seals it against Rutgers
Coming in at the No. 4 spot is another player who displayed their late game heroics: redshirt freshman guard Wesley Yates III. Well into second overtime, Yates III took the game into his hands, going one-on-one with the Rutgers defender and pulling up from a couple feet behind the 3-point line with the shot clock winding down to take control of the game for the Trojans. This is already a difficult shot to hit in normal circumstances, but to do it late in a second overtime to give your team an edge, this play just had to make its way onto the list.
5. JuJu Watkins’ decisive 3-pointer to finish off Indiana
Watkins is back to wrap up this week’s list. She had her fingerprints all over the ending of this Big Ten Tournament game, as she often does. Watkins found herself against an iso defender up six with two-and-a-half minutes remaining, Indiana tried to send a double team but it was too late — Watkins already laced the three in her opponent’s face. This shot put the Trojans up nine in the final few minutes and stole any hope the Hoosiers had left of winning this game. Watkins’ clutch three gave her a 30-point double-double with 10 rebounds.
Logan’s Trojan Top 5 comes out every week.