Following a sluggish first half Monday night, USC men’s basketball trudged off the court at Galen Center with only a six-point lead at halftime. Players and coaches looked visibly frustrated as they jogged to the locker room.

However, a fiery halftime speech from Head Coach Eric Musselman — and a faster-paced, tightened rotation — ignited an 11-2 run to start the second half, fueling a 94-64 win over Cal Poly (0-1) in the Trojans’ (1-0) home opener.

Sophomore forward Jacob Cofie led USC with a career-high 23 points — besting all of his point totals in 32 games with Virginia last season — while adding 10 rebounds for a double-double. Cofie said he was inspired by what Musselman told the team at halftime, but jokingly refused to repeat what his coach had said.

“I’ll keep that [behind] closed doors,” Cofie said in a postgame news conference. “But it definitely fired me up.”

While Cofie led the offense, junior guard Rodney Rice made an immediate impact in his USC debut as well, scoring 21 points and adding eight assists in a team-high 34 minutes.

One of three Trojans to top 20 points, Rice played in his first game after missing both October exhibition games and nearly a month of practice due to a left shoulder injury. He was cleared on Sunday and said he was excited to play against opponents in a live game.

“The shoulder feels great,” Rice said in a postgame news conference. “We don’t play live that much in practice, so this is the first time actually being physical and going against guys, [which] feels great.”

Musselman said he was initially unsure about starting Rice, but after seeing his performance last year — and with extra rest between games — he felt confident giving him the nod.

“When we signed Rodney, we signed him to be a starter,” Musselman said. “He’s still got to earn it, which I think he has done.”

Another key addition from the transfer portal, graduate forward Chad Baker-Mazara, struggled from the field, connecting on just 20% of his shots and 25% of his 3-pointers. However, USC’s depth, bolstered by a strong recruiting class, helped offset his shooting woes.

The Trojans shot 46% from the field and committed 14 turnovers, while Cal Poly shot just 33% and gave the ball away 22 times. After the roster excelled defensively in USC’s two exhibition games, the Trojan defense proved once again to be crucial, recording seven steals and 11 blocks in the win.

Musselman started four forwards against the Mustangs, including senior forward Ezra Ausar, the third Trojan to surpass 20 points in the game. Several of those points came via the free throw line, as he made nine of his team-leading 16 free throws.

“Ezra’s ability to draw free throws is [at] an elite level,” Musselman said. “Hopefully, in our system, we can figure out a way to get him to the line.”

After recording just two points in the first half, Ausar’s production down the stretch skyrocketed, scoring 19 points in just over 15 minutes of second-half play. When Ausar wasn’t at the line, he was throwing down dunks to draw loud cheers from a crowd of nearly 4,000 at Galen Center.

For Musselman and the team, the key to the final 20 minutes was a tighter, more consistent rotation after constant first-half substitutions. Ten players played at least six minutes in the first half, whereas in the second half, six players rotated on and off the court, each registering at least 10 minutes.

“At halftime, I said ‘I’m going to do what I’m comfortable with,’ which is tightening the rotation up,” Musselman said. “We’ll have to see what we do moving forward, [but] I’m much more comfortable with the shorter rotation.”

The Trojans doubled their first-half point total with seven minutes to spare in the second half and ended the night on a 30-11 run.

Cofie, in a strong season-opening performance, allowed the game to slow down for him, shooting a 3-pointer and punctuating the large scoring run with a dunk in the final minute.

“I just wanted the game to come to me,” Cofie said. “I’m definitely not hesitant to shoot [the ball].”

Cofie and the Trojans will look to build on the win Sunday at 3 p.m. against Manhattan University at Galen Center, as USC aims for its third straight 2-0 start.