USC Men's Basketball Secures First Big Ten Win Against Huskies

Saturday, December 7

Seattle, Wash.

3:00 p.m.

USC

6-4,1-1Big Ten

Washington

6-3,0-2Big Ten

Southern California

Washington

Photo by: UW Athletics

USC Men's Basketball Secures First Big Ten Win Against Huskies

December 07, 2024 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

This is the 10th-straight win for USC over Washington as Coach Eric Musselman locked in the team's first Big Ten win.

SEATTLE – USC Men's Basketball (6-4, 1-1 Big Ten) hit the road for their first Big Ten Conference road game as they took on the University of Washington Huskies. From the very first basket, the Trojans had control of this game and never let up the lead as they grabbed their first Big Ten win with a score of 85-61.

"We came on the road and secured our first road win while leading for 39:43. Washington didn't have a lead at all during the game. That's kind of unheard of on the road," said Head Coach Eric Musselman. "I thought this was kind of a build-up for our team. We played well during the Oregon game for 30 minutes then played poor basketball for 10 minutes, but that was against a ranked team. We talked about a lot of the positives that happened even in the loss against Oregon, and I thought that we came back to have our best game of the year."

As they hit the floor at the Alaska Airlines Arena, the Trojans were ready for the task at hand as they were hungry for their first Big Ten win. USC came out the gate hot as they won the jump ball and secured the first basket off a layup from Wesley Yates III. This lit a fire among his team as Saint Thomas followed up with two baskets of his own while Desmond Claude made his mark from the charity stripe. Both USC and Washington ended up exchanging baskets, but the Trojans ended that quickly. Chibuzo Agbo helped his team by scoring five of the team's points in their 8-0 run that extended their lead even further over the Huskies. The Trojans didn't let up from there. They finished out the first half with one more nine-point run that allowed USC to go to the locker room with double the number of points as their opponent as the score sat at 51-25.

Washington's scoring drought of 2:40 continued through the first minute of the second half as the Trojans' defense kept them from shooting. Even though the opposing team went on a short run, it didn't last for long as USC picked up the defensive efforts yet again, causing another three-minute scoring drought for the Huskies. USC continued to apply the pressure as the offense lit up, giving the Trojans the biggest lead of the season with 31. The Huskies retaliated from there, going on an 8-0 run over the Trojans before Thomas could put his team back on track. That was the last time USC was going to give Washington any wiggle room. The Trojans went on one more run that solidified their place ahead of the Huskies as USC came out with the 85-61 win.

NOTABLES

USC unveiled a new starting lineup for the eighth time this season as Desmond Claude, Saint Thomas, Wesley Yates III, Chibuzo Agbo and Josh Cohen were today's starters. This is also the first time the Trojans have worn their Cardinal jerseys during the season.
Four Trojans scored in the double-digits for the fourth time this season. USC is now 3-1 with four Trojans in double figures.
Wesley Yates III scored the first basket of the game in his first career start for USC. Yates III, a transfer from Washington, finished his return to the Alaska Airlines Arena with 19 points, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
Rashaun Agee had a great showing after sitting out for the team's first Big Ten game as he led USC with seven rebounds. He also added 15 points, two blocks and two assists.
USC led 51-25 at the break, marking the seventh time this season USC led at the half. The Trojans are 5-2 when leading at the half.
The Trojans' 51 first-half points tie the most in a half this season as they also scored 51 in the first half against UT Arlington.
USC's 26-point lead at the half marked their largest margin of separation heading into the second half this season. This is also the first time this season that USC has doubled an opponent's score by halftime.
This is the second game in a row where the Trojans caused nine turnovers in the first half. The only game where they caused more turnovers in the first half was against Idaho State when they caused 10.
Saint Thomas set a new season-high in points as he finished the game with 19. Not only that, but he was tied for the most assists and steals on the team, accumulating four and two, respectively.
USC's leading scorer was Desmond Claude, who scored 20 points off just six shots. He also contributed four rebounds and four assists. Claude made a buzzer-beating three to close out the first half.
USC's 85 points was the second-best offensive performance by the Trojans in a game this season. The best performance for the Trojans came against UT Arlington when they scored 98.
With the win, USC improves to 6-4 overall and 1-1 in Big Ten play. Tonight marked the Trojans' first Big Ten win and their 10th-straight win over the Huskies,
Coach Eric Musselman is now 2-0 all-time when coaching against the Huskies.

UP NEXT
The Trojans will return to Galen Center as they begin a four-game home stand. This stretch will kick off with another non-conference game against Montana State. Tip-off will be at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 15. For those who can't make it to Los Angeles, they can watch the game on the Big Ten Network.