With a little under 10 minutes remaining against Iowa on Wednesday night, USC men’s basketball faced a familiar scene — starting the game strong before collapsing after halftime. Down 17 points, the Trojans looked far out of the game before graduate guard Kam Woods caught fire and mounted a comeback. 

Woods alone scored 19 consecutive points for the Trojans, bringing the team within 1 point in the final 30 seconds.

An offensive rebound from sophomore forward Jacob Cofie followed, which turned into a made Cofie layup as the Trojans took the lead with eight seconds remaining. The thrilling comeback, however, unraveled when freshman guard Jerry Easter II fouled Hawkeye senior guard Bennett Stirtz, who converted his free throws to seal the game at 73-72 for Iowa.

The devastating loss dropped USC (15-6, 4-6 Big Ten) to its third defeat in the last four games and pushed the Trojans down to 11th place in the conference, swapping places with Iowa (15-5, 5-4).

“We’re definitely a resilient basketball team,” Assistant Coach Earl Boykins said in a postgame news conference. “It’s just unfortunate that we didn’t come out with a win.”

Wednesday’s game between the two teams also honored former Iowa and USC coach George Raveling, who passed away in September 2025. The Hall of Fame coach spent his final years leading both programs before a car accident ended his coaching career.

Woods carries USC comeback

Woods was a spark on both sides of the ball, finishing with a career-high 33 points while logging all 40 minutes. He scored 27 of those points in the second half and made his first two 3-pointers in a Trojan uniform, adding four steals to his overall dominant night.

His scoring run nearly single-handedly brought the Trojans back into the game, giving USC a chance to win the matchup.

“Kam, overall, is unbelievable,” Boykins said. “Of course, his 33 points were an outstanding offensive effort, but defensively, he was even better.”

He surpassed his season-thus-far point total midway through the second half, breaking out when the Trojans needed him the most.

Injuries, fouls and turnovers accentuate rough stretch

Injuries and bad play have struck the Trojans hard this season, especially Wednesday night. Following season-ending injuries to junior guard Rodney Rice and senior forward Amarion Dickerson, USC was struck with another injury to one of its most consistent offensive players, junior guard Jordan Marsh. 

Marsh missed his second consecutive game due to a turf toe injury, despite being cleared to play pregame.

In the midst of Woods’ scoring spree, senior forward Ezra Ausar fouled out of the game, making him the second Trojan to do so in the past three games. Graduate forward Chad Baker-Mazara was the first, after fouling out in the loss to Northwestern (10-11, 2-8) last week.

Ausar put up 10 points in 31 minutes but tied a season low with just two made free throws. He remains one of only two healthy Trojans averaging double-digits in scoring this season with 15.9 points per game.

Baker-Mazara, USC’s leading scorer at 18.9 points per game, put up 13 in the loss but struggled mightily with controlling the ball, committing a career-high seven turnovers, leading a team total of 15 — a glaring stat that now ties USC for third-most turnovers per game in the Big Ten.

“Not only were we turning the ball over, but they were getting steals and layups,” Boykins said. “You can’t have that.”

Growing pains for freshman guards

Two of USC’s youngest players — Easter and freshman guard Alijah Arenas — have started their collegiate careers on the wrong foot as they lack rhythm and consistency on the defensive and offensive sides of the court. 

Easter ended all hopes for a possible comeback with his costly foul on Stirtz in the final four seconds. He also struggled on offense, scoring 2 points solely on free throws and adding two assists across 24 minutes.

Arenas has yet to showcase his potential, scoring 6 points on 50% shooting, but added three fouls in the first half, limiting his time on the court. The former highly touted prospect has yet to score double-digit points as he wraps up his first week of playing collegiate basketball.

The Trojans look to move on from the 1-point loss as they return to Galen Center for a two-game homestand. USC will close out a rough January against a stumbling Rutgers (9-12, 2-8) squad Saturday at 4 p.m., followed by a marquee matchup against Indiana (14-7, 5-5) Tuesday at 7 p.m.