USC Men's Basketball Falls Short In 85-74 Loss To Michigan

Saturday, January 4

Los Angeles, Calif.

5:00 p.m.

USC

9-5,1-2Big Ten

Michigan

11-3,3-0Big Ten

Michigan

Southern California

USC Men's Basketball Falls Short In 85-74 Loss To Michigan

January 04, 2025 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Postgame Press Conference

The Trojans had four players finish with double-digit points as they returned to Big Ten play.

LOS ANGELES – USC Men's Basketball (9-5, 1-2 Big Ten) returned to the Galen Center for their first game in 2025 as they restarted Big Ten play against the University of Michigan Wolverines. Despite a close battle between these two teams, the Trojans could not stay ahead of the Wolverines for more than two minutes, resulting in them dropping this game with a score of 85-74.

HOW IT HAPPENED
This game started in favor of the visitors as Michigan came out hot with a 6-0 run over the Trojans. It didn't take long for USC to respond as they came back with their own six-point run, closing the gap between them and the Wolverines. Once the score was tied up, the Trojans didn't let up as they went blow for blow with the Wolverines, exchanging the lead 10 times in the first half alone. However, Michigan went on a quick 6-0 run right at the end of the half, resulting in USC being down by four heading into the locker room as the score sat at 42-38.

The second half started the same as the first as Michigan went on a big run to take a 15-point lead over USC. After five minutes of play, the Trojans picked up the pace, going on a 13-2 run to tie up the game with 10 minutes to go. For the next three and a half minutes, neither team could score as the score remained at 63 apiece. It wasn't until Kevin Patton Jr. made a layup that gave USC the advantage for a short amount of time. And just as quickly as USC took the lead, Michigan took it back yet again. Another run for the Wolverines and a two-minute scoring drought for the Trojans caused an eight-point lead for the visiting team. The Trojans made one more valiant effort to try and close the gap between them and the Wolverines, but at the end of the game, Michigan proved to be too much as USC lost their first game of 2025 85-74.

NOTABLES

Four Trojans scored in the double digits against Michigan - Desmond Claude (19), Wesley Yates III (19), Kevin Patton Jr. (14) and Saint Thomas (10).
Josh Cohen grabbed his 500th career defensive rebound today at just under the 12-minute mark. By the end of the game, he hit a total of 783 total rebounds in his career.
Kevin Patton Jr. recorded a pair of blocks against the Wolverines to officially reach 50 career blocks. Patton Jr. turned in a stellar first half that included two blocks, one steal and six points including one dunk. All-in-all, the Trojan recorded a season-high 14 points.
Starting in his fifth game this season, redshirt freshman Wesley Yates III recorded 12 points in the first half, while shooting 100 percent from the field. Yates' hot streak continued in the second half, shooting 7-12 and ending the game tied with his career-high 19 points.
USC outscored Michigan 14-6 in the paint during the first half.
The Trojans had 12 offensive boards on Saturday evening, recording eight second-chance points against the Wolverines. Michigan had eight offensive boards.
Scoring nine points on Saturday evening, Trojan Chibuzo Agbo officially surpassed 1,100 career points. The senior now sits at 1,102 career points.
Desmond Claude was a key contributor for the Trojans yet again. The junior tallied 19 points, seven rebounds and four assists before exiting the game late in the second half.
USC finished with a four-possession advantage over the Wolverines 72-68.

QUOTABLES
Coach Eric Musselman on what the Trojans did well tonight…
"I thought our small-ball lineup did a good job of getting us back in the game. We did a great job of defending in the paint in the first half. We led the game in rebounding during most of the game even with them having two 7-footers. But we are 0-2 at home. This is a league that dominates at home. We have an uphill battle in this league."

Coach Eric Musselman on the Kevin Patton Jr. and Wesley Yates III…
"Kevin was phenomenal. We are going to need him to play well for us and continue to grow. When you look at Wesley Yates as a freshman, I think he was perfect from the field until the last three minutes of the game. So we have a freshman and a sophomore that were really big in an early season Big Ten game, which is a positive. But we also have to grow our team, and they are two young players that we need to grow as we look to the future."

Wesley Yates III on chemistry playing alongside Kevin Patton Jr.:
"I say we just play off of the feel. We've played basketball at a pretty high level basically our whole lives, especially high school and AAU. So it's just about the feeling of the game and being able to play off one another, that's what makes the team special. It's about everybody being able to play off of each other and not just one person having to have the ball to score."

Wesley Yates III on his development as a player and growth:
"It's just been playing better and playing up to my standards. It looked like I had a solid game, but I don't feel like I had a good game at all because we didn't win. Whenever we win, it's cool to me, but it's important for me to not lose focus in the game. Just trying to make every possession count and I feel like once I do that, I'll have better results that can help the team."

Kevin Patton Jr. on preparing in practice for a team with height:
"I think focus is a key thing because you can't accurately simulate two seven-footers in pick and roll with each other, but it's all about being diligent every rep. When the time comes, we have to be ready and that means trusting what we practiced over the past week while preparing."

Kevin Patton Jr. on chemistry playing alongside Wesley Yates III:
"Playing with each other, talking and even the vibe off of the court helps us on the court. You can kinda see it when we're just playing off each other and it's kind of free-flowing balls moving around. That's just kind of how this team plays and how we're built to play."

UP NEXT
The Trojans will hit the road for their first Midwest road trip as they take on the Hoosiers of Indiana University. Tip-off will be at 4 p.m. PT. Fans can watch all the action on the Big Ten Network or listen through the ESPN LA app.