USC hosts Arizona, ASU this weekend

After defeating then No. 25-ranked Colorado last Sunday, the Trojans will try to bolster their resume for the NCAA Tournament against unranked Arizona State on Friday and No. 22 Arizona on Sunday. The Trojans are projected as a No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament, per ESPN. A weekend win against another ranked team would move them up even higher.

“We knew that our growth trajectory should be steeper than most teams,” said Head Coach Lindsay Gottlieb in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “I think our commitment to defense [and] our willingness to utilize the different weapons we have on offense … we’ve gotten some big wins because of it.”

Led by a stalwart defense, Gottlieb is amidst a 16-5 season, a dramatic turnaround from the 12-16 record the year prior. The Trojans are currently seventh in the nation in scoring defense, something that Gottlieb has attributed to the addition of Associate Head Coach Beth Burns.

The Trojans are also coming off a hot weekend offensively, scoring 144 points in two games after scoring just 114 points combined in the games against Washington and Washington State. In the last two games, graduate guard Destiny Littleton led the charge, scoring 15 points against Utah and 21 against Colorado.

Aside from Littleton, sophomore forward Rayah Marshall is averaging a double-double on the season and leads the team in rebounds per game with 10.8. She is also third in the nation in blocks per game, with an average of three.

“As far as offense, [I’m] just playing my role,” Marshall said. “If the ball is coming to me, I’m just trying to be poised.” 

Marshall and the Trojans will first tackle Arizona State. The Sun Devils are last in the Pac-12 with a conference record of 0-10 and are the only team in the conference to have a losing overall record. After starting the season off 5-0, ASU is 2-12 in its last 14 games and has not won a game since Dec. 17. The Sun Devils have been plagued by injury all season long. Earlier in the year, the Sun Devils had to forfeit two of their games because they did not have enough healthy players. Junior guard Tyi Skinner is the only player on the ASU roster that has started in every game this season. Skinner has a team-leading 18.7 points per game and shoots 34.1% from 3-point range.

“We don’t take anyone lightly,” Gottlieb said. “Tyi Skinner is a high-octane guard. She can really score, same with [Jaddan] Simmons … We’ve got to make them take tough shots, keep them off the free throw line.”

On Sunday, USC will look for its third victory against ranked opponents when they play No. 22 Arizona. The Wildcats are tied for fourth place in the Pac-12 Conference and have an overall record of 16-5. Four of the five Arizona starters average over 10 points a game. Marshall recognizes the challenge of guarding against the versatile Wildcats offense.

“I know we’re definitely coming to play with some pride and as hard as we can and trust in our defense like we always do,” Marshall said.

After scoring 79 and 80 points against Utah and ASU, respectively, the Wildcats’ offense has stalled heading into their match against the Trojans. Arizona scored 61 points in a win against Washington before scoring 59 in a loss to Washington State. USC has a 59-28 all-time record against both Arizona and ASU. The Trojans are 10-1 at home, with the only loss being against UCLA. The Wildcats are 5-3 on the road, while the Sun Devils are 3-6.

USC hosts Arizona State on Friday at 7 p.m. and Arizona on Sunday at noon as the Trojans will look to move up in the Pac-12 standings.