Men’s basketball looks to win out at home

Following a tough two-game road trip that ended in losses for the USC men’s basketball team, the Trojans will return home for their final two home games of the season.

The Trojans (10-17, 2-13) were blown out by No. 7 Arizona on Thursday night 87-57. After keeping the game close for the first 10 minutes, USC watched Arizona end the half on a 20-8 run.

Coming out of halftime, the Wildcats started where they left off. Led by freshman star Stanley Johnson, Arizona opened the half on a 12-0 run, extended the lead to 30 points and never looked back.

The Trojans played a much better all-around game on Sunday against the Arizona State Sun Devils. USC came out sloppy, falling behind by as many as six, and trailed at the half 27-24. However, the Trojans came out of the half a team on a mission.

Led by some great team basketball and a balanced offense, the Trojans grabbed the lead early in the second half. The Trojans let another close game slip away in the closing minutes, however. Arizona State guard Tra Holder hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 56 with 1:50 to play, then assisted on another to put the Sun Devils up for good.

Before the game, USC sent home starting guard Katin Reinhardt and bench players Chass Bryan and Devon Pflueger for a violation of team rules. Freshman Jordan McLaughlin, who leads the team in assists, was forced to miss the road trip due to injury.

Reinhardt and McLaughlin’s absence paved the way for sophomore Kahlil Dukes to emerge in the rotation. Dukes led the team in scoring against Arizona State with 18 points, including four 3-pointers, and chipped in three rebounds and two assists.

The Trojans late game collapse against the Sun Devils was just another chapter in a familiar book for head coach Andy Enfield. The Trojans have given away games to Oregon, Oregon State and Stanford, were beaten at the buzzer by Cal, and lost to Colorado in triple overtime. A few bounces go their way, and we’re talking about a team in the middle of the Pac-12 race.

“I’m certainly optimistic about where we are as a program and what we’re going to do in the future,” Enfield said. “But at the same time, we would like to be on the other side of these once in a while.”

Luckily for the Trojans, the two teams currently at the bottom of the Pac-12 standings with USC, Washington and Washington State, will be coming to the Galen Center this weekend.

The Washington State Cougars (11-15, 5-9) will make the trek down the Pacific coastline to take on the Trojans. The Cougars, who lost four of their last five, will be looking for a win to improve their seeding for the upcoming Pac-12 tournament. The Cougars could finish anywhere from 11th seed to the eighth seed.

Meanwhile, the Trojans will look to gain some momentum heading into the tournament, as well as get some healthy bodies back. McLaughlin’s return date is still up in the air, but sophomore transfer Katin Reinhardt should return for the game against the Cougars.

In McLaughlin’s absence, fellow freshman Elijah Stewart has stepped up his game. In the three games since McLaughlin went down, Stewart is averaging 12 points, four rebounds, three blocks, two assists, and one-half steals, in just over 30 minutes. Stewart is one of two guards, along with Oregon State’s Gary Payton II, to be in the Pac-12’s top 10 in blocks per game.

However, sophomore Nikola Jovanovic has been in quite a slump as of late. The second-year forward from Serbia has been outmanned in his two previous matchups against the Arizona schools.

Washington State is led by the one two punch of guard DaVonte Lacy, currently fourth in scoring in the Pac-12, and Josh Hawkinson, the only player in the Pac-12 currently averaging a double-double. After those two players, the Cougars are relatively thin, however, having no other player averaging double figures.

The Trojans will actually size up pretty well against the Cougars, not a common trend this season. The Cougars only have one player above six-foot-10 and lack a true center much like the Trojans. The Trojans will need to continue their team play, especially if McLaughlin and Reinhardt are unavailable, if they hope to get a much-needed win.

The Trojans and Cougars will tip off this Wednesday, Feb. 25 at 7 p.m. The game will air on the Pac-12 Network.