It’s not about how you start, it’s how you finish. The Trojans couldn’t figure out how to finish on Sunday, losing to the Buckeyes 88-83.
The battle between sophomore guard Jaloni Cambridge – who notched 33 points, six rebounds and three steals – and freshman guard Jazzy Davidson – who had a career-high 32 points with six rebounds and four assists – was a matchup that kept fans on the edge of their seats.
At the post-game press conference, Davidson was visibly emotional as her eyes were tearing up.
“We’re all competitors and we all want to win,” Davidson said. “It’s just a hard loss, but it’s fine, we’ll learn from it.”
USC’s six game win streak was snapped with the loss. It’s no secret that USC needed this win to boost its tournament seeding and continue the momentum after a slow start to the season. Today showed just how much has changed for the Trojans in a year.
A year ago, head coach Lindsay Gottlieb was upset that USC wasn’t the overall No. 1 seed in March Madness. Now, the team is fighting to stay in at least a top-10 seed in their bracket. This game was a chance to fight through adversity and show toughness that Gottlieb wanted from the Trojans. While they were tough, the grit fizzled out at the end.
USC started off sluggish – much like they did at the start of the Wisconsin game on Thursday – but found rhythm, utilizing their 3-point shooting to stay ahead.
In the first quarter USC was 4-for-7 from three, with Davidson going 3-for-3 and making the final basket in the first to give USC the lead for the first time going into the second quarter.
An unlikely hero for the Trojans was sophomore forward Dayana Mendes, who came off the bench and made two threes in the second, adding to the offensive firepower the Trojans needed. She finished with a career-high 13 points, going 3-for-5 from deep and adding three rebounds.
Still, the first half was a battle between Davidson and Cambridge. Davidson led the Trojans at the half with 13 points, three rebounds and two assists. Cambridge led her team with 12 points and two rebounds.
Both teams came out firing in the third quarter. USC was struggling with turnover mistakes, but 73.3% shooting helped keep them afloat against Ohio State’s 57.1%. The third was the most intense quarter yet, and Schottenstein Center was loud heading into the fourth quarter, with fans expecting a battle since USC held a 64-61 lead over OSU.
It all came down to the fourth quarter to see who wanted it more.
And it wasn’t USC.
OSU came out ready to win on senior night, opening with a 15-1 run against the Trojans. As usual, it was self-inflicted wounds from USC that fueled the Buckeyes surge.
“Finally in the fourth quarter, we played with a little bit more determination and grit on that end of the floor and we got some more stops,” Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff said.
The Trojans made sloppy passes and committed unnecessary turnovers, allowing Ohio State to take advantage of every mistake. In total, Ohio State scored 31 points off USC’s 25 turnovers.
“They’re good at making tough plays, so you sure as heck can’t give them easy ones off of turnovers,” Gottlieb said.
Although USC put together some late points, it was too little. The damage was done and the Trojans’ streak came to an end.
Are they still worth watching?
USC did lose, but this is still a team to watch. Today, the Trojans really put together a team win through the first three quarters – they just have to learn how to finish.
While obviously Davidson was the star of today, it didn’t feel like it was just the Jazzy show. Sophomore guard Kennedy Smith had an impressive game as well with 18 points, three rebounds and three blocks.
In addition, junior guard Malia Samuels brought the defensive intensity despite struggling on the other end of the floor, Mendes made some much needed 3-pointers and redshirt freshman forward Laura Williams continued to prove why she is a starter.
Despite the loss, USC proved it can take on top teams. The key is to get everyone involved. Davidson, Smith and senior guard Kara Dunn can only do so much on their own. If USC can get those three rolling at the same time and utilize the bench to its advantage, this can be a contending team.
Next, the Trojans will be focusing on finishing strong. They hit the road for the last time during the regular season against Penn State before coming back home to take on rival No. 2 UCLA at Galen Center.
If USC tightens up their ball-handling and plays at the same intensity they were playing for the first three quarters of the game, they can win against Penn State and give UCLA a run for their money.