A rivalry game usually brings the best out of teams. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case for the Trojans who couldn’t handle the packed rival crowd, falling 81-62 against the Bruins.
The crowd was electric for UCLA, and senior guard Donovan Dent fed off of every bit of energy it gave him.
“When you have that type of energy, you come out and hit some shorts early. It just feeds in everything,” Dent said. “Everything was going good for me. I was just feeling good.”
Dent shined under the bright Los Angeles lights, as he dropped 30 points, including shooting 5-for-6 from deep. He also committed zero turnovers in his exceptional effort.
“Dent was phenomenal,” USC head coach Eric Musselman said.
Despite the hostile UCLA environment, USC showed fight early. Graduate guard Chad Baker-Mazara went toe-for-toe with Dent in the first half taking control of USC’s offense. He hit multiple threes going 4-for-4 in the first eight minutes of the game. Even as he took contested shots, it seemed like he couldn’t miss.
After tweaking his knee at the start of the second half, Baker-Mazara couldn’t find that same consistency for the rest of the game.
Turnovers and scoring were two huge detriments for the Trojans, and it became their undoing. The team committed a whopping 14 turnovers which stalled the offense and gave UCLA great breakaway opportunities. On top of that, the Trojans shot just 29% from the field in the first half, and Baker-Mazara was the only Trojan with more than two made field goals at the break.
Freshman guard Alijah Arenas was a big cause of the turnover woes, committing five. Arenas also shot 25% from the field and scored 10 points, continuing his recent stretch of inefficiency.
“It’s a learning curve for him,” Musselman said. “We’re trying to balance his minutes and teach him on the fly.”
At halftime, UCLA led 38-29, after Dent hit a buzzer-beater to end the half.
USC pushed for a comeback at the start of the second half. Graduate guard Kam Woods knocked down a three, and sophomore forward Jacob Cofie followed up with one of his own. Then, Baker-Mazara came off the bench after working on his knee and forced gritty baskets that cut the lead to five.
Despite USC’s push to rally, UCLA never lost control.
Dent was the constant answer for the Bruins whenever the Trojans went on a run. He hit a deep contested three midway through the second half that sent Pauley Pavilion in a frenzy and swung all the momentum UCLA’s way.
Senior forward Tyler Bilodeau’s strong interior presence, along with sophomore guard Trent Perry’s 13 points and four steals, allowed UCLA to build separation against USC. Bilodeau added 13 points of his own.
”I just feel proud,” Dent said. “All the hard work in the gym, all the hours, it’s what you work out for.”
The Bruins ended the game on a 17-7 run to seal the rivalry victory.
USC now turns its attention to what lies ahead with tournament hopes hanging on by just a thread after losing four straight games.
“We got two home games and a road game,” Musselman said. “We got to get back to work and see what happens.”
USC faces a daunting task hosting No. 12 Nebraska on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 1 p.m.