Trojans host Cougars in key Pac-12 clash


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Sophomore guard Kobe Johnson is carrying the torch for USC on defense, leading the team in steals per game and sitting at third in total blocks. (Brooks Taylor | Daily Trojan)

After a statement win against then-No. 8 UCLA last Thursday, the men’s basketball team moved off of the NCAA tournament bubble as they jumped from the “Next Four Out” group to a projected No. 9 seed in Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology. The Trojans will now look to ride the momentum when Washington State comes to town on Thursday.

The two teams faced off earlier this season at Beasley Coliseum in Pullman, with the Cougars defeating the Trojans 81-71 in a fairly uncontested matchup. Despite out-rebounding Washington State, USC shot just 16.7 percent from the 3-point line, which contributed to the 10-point loss.

The 3-point line will likely be a factor again in this upcoming matchup as the Trojans look to amend their struggles in that facet of the game. This season, USC is shooting only 32.6 percent from behind the arc, a mark that ranks 268th in the entire country. 

“We’ve had about seven or eight games shooting 3-18, 2-17, 3-19,” said Head Coach Andy Enfield in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “We need to make open shots and I think our offensive flow has been getting better as we’ve progressed through the season.”

Washington State is led by junior guard TJ Bamba, who is averaging a team-high 14.6 PPG, and sophomore forward Mouhamed Gueye, who is averaging a team-high 8.3 rebounds per game. Both Bamba and Gueye finished with double figures in the win against the Trojans in January, and the Cougars will need both of their stars to have big games again if they want to complete the season sweep over USC.

“We know we have to perform better on the defensive end,” said Enfield. “It’s just not stopping one or two players, but stopping them as a group.”

As they have all season, the Trojans will look to their star veteran guards, senior Boogie Ellis (16.3 ppg) and fifth-year Drew Peterson (14 ppg) to lead them to another victory. 

Ellis is coming off a career-high 31-point game in the comeback win against UCLA in which he scored 27 points in the second-half. However, he emphasized putting his historic night behind him.

“It’s over now,” said Ellis in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “So just focusing on Washington State, having confidence, playing my game [and] staying in the moment.”

Peterson, who led the Trojans with 16 points and eight rebounds in their loss to the Cougars, looks to replicate his success on Thursday. 

“Yeah it was good to be able to score a little bit,” said Peterson. “We got the loss so what’s more important is getting everything going defensively…We’re trying to avenge that last time we were up in Pullman.”

USC comes into this game as the winners of 10 straight at home, not having lost at Galen Center since their season opener against Florida Gulf Coast University back in November. On the other hand, Washington State has struggled mightily on the road, with a 1-6 record when playing away from the Beasley Coliseum this season.

Galen Center was at a season-high 94% capacity against UCLA with approximately 9,605 people in attendance to watch the comeback win. Although Washington State is not as big of a rival as the Bruins were, another large fan attendance will aid the Trojans in defending their home court once again. 

“As a kid, I dreamed of playing in environments like that,” said Ellis. “If the Galen Center was filled like that every night, we would not lose a game.”

Despite being in the bottom half of the Pac-12 Standings with a 5-7 conference record, the Cougars are a dangerous team that USC can’t overlook. Not only because the Trojans have lost to them before, but because Washington State has big wins over Arizona State and No. 5 Arizona. 

“We have a lot to play for, this is what you play college basketball for,” said Enfield when asked about not becoming complacent after a big win over UCLA. “Our guys are playing very good basketball and they understand what’s at stake and how hard they have to play.”

As the Trojans enter their final month of games before March, their NCAA Tournament hopes are looking promising if they continue playing as they did against UCLA. However, that starts by not slipping up for the second time against an underrated Washington State team.

The Trojans will take on Washington State at 8 p.m. on Thursday at Galen Center.