Just two weeks ago, after a third straight loss, USC’s season seemed headed in a disconcerting direction. Eric Musselman, just eight games into his tenure as the Trojans coach, basically said as much at the time, wondering aloud whether USC would manage to win a single game in its new conference.
But that outlook had at least steadied by Wednesday night, as the Trojans ripped off three straight wins in the wake of that losing streak, the latest a 90-69 victory over Cal State Northridge.
“We’re moving in the right direction,” Musselman said.
Somewhere in that three-game stretch, USC unlocked something that has since sent its offense soaring to new heights. The Trojans won each of those three games by 20 points or more.
“I would say we’re figuring out how to play with each other,” point guard Desmond Claude said. “We’re starting to click.”
After the Trojans shot a stellar 57% from the field in wins over Washington and Montana State, USC’s newfound firepower manifested primarily beyond the three-point line Wednesday.
The Trojans shot an eye-popping 63% from three-point range — and that was after two threes were missed late, well after the game was in hand. Guard Chibuzo Agbo paced that effort with his best game of the season, as he made five of seven from long range. He finished with a season-high 23 points.
Claude turned in another strong effort on that end as well, scoring 21 while adding a season-high nine assists. For Claude, it was his fourth straight game with 19 points or more, as he has emerged as the Trojans’ most consistent offensive threat.
“Desmond was phenomenal,” Musselman said. “[He’s] a player who people wondered if he could be a point guard. There’s not a lot of point guards in the country that play a whole season and can have a 9-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.”
USC was still outworked on the glass, where it has struggled all season. But otherwise, it was a complete effort from the Trojans, who clamped down on defense after halftime, holding Northridge to just 35% from the field in the second half. That wouldn’t be enough to keep up with USC on Wednesday.
The Trojans came out scorching hot from the field, knocking down nine of their first 10 shots. After only a few minutes, the Trojans seemed poised to run away with a smooth victory.
But the shots stopped falling soon after that. USC made just three of its next 16, as Northridge chipped away at its lead. An 0-for-10 stretch would eventually hand the Matadors their only lead of the night.
It would take a three-pointer at the buzzer from Kevin Patton Jr. to wrest away a halftime lead.
That wouldn’t be a problem in the second half, as USC made one three-pointer, then another, then another. The Trojans wouldn’t look back from there, outscoring Northridge 50-30 after the half to run away with a third straight victory.
