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USC Trojans 96, Gonzaga Bulldogs 93: Live score recap, highlights from charity exhibition game [10/26/24]

Bulldogs fall to Trojans in charity exhibition match

Cole Forsman

Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford
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The Gonzaga Bulldogs fell to the USC Trojans, 96-93, in a season-opening charity exhibition game from Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, California, on Saturday.

The Zags, who debuted at No. 6 in the preseason Associated Press Top 25 poll, got off to a slow start and fell behind by as many as 11 points to the Trojans, who were led by Michigan transfer Terrance Williams' 20 points. Gonzaga was led by Arkansas grad transfer Khalif Battle, as the 6-foot-5 guard scored 20 points against his former coach Eric Musselman.

Battle got the starting nod alongside Ryan Nembhard in the backcourt, while Michael Ajayi, Ben Gregg and Graham Ike made up the starting frontcourt. Nolan Hickman played 29 minutes off the bench and finished with 12 points.

Both teams shot 26-of-33 from the free-throw line in a game that didn't track personal fouls for disqualification. Gonzaga scored 22 second-chance points to USC's 13, though the Trojans won the battle in the paint, 38-32.

Here is the live updates recap for Gonzaga's exhibition game against USC.

FINAL: USC 96, Gonzaga 93

SECOND HALF:

USC 93, Gonzaga 91 (0:21): Claude stepped up in the clutch for the Trojans with a tough floater over Battle to make it a 4-point game with less than 30 seconds on the clock. Nembhard knocked down a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession.

USC 85, Gonzaga 84 (2:54): After falling behind by nine, the Zags made it a 1-point game after Battle drilled his fourth 3-pointer of the night, capping off an 8-0 scoring burst. Nembhard scored 10 points in a three-minute span to keep Gonzaga in the fight.

USC 68, Gonzaga 62 (7:57): Cohen knocked down four straight shots at the charity stripe in back-to-back USC possessions to extend the Trojans lead heading down the stretch. Nembhard drilled a pull-up jumper in between Cohen's trips to the foul line.

USC 64, Gonzaga 60 (9:37): USC called a full timeout to regroup after the Bulldogs rattled off a 7-0 scoring burst to pull within striking distance. Ike, who had a slow first half for his standards, got himself going with a 3-point play coming off a pick-and-roll with Hickman, followed by a floater along the baseline moments later.

USC 59, Gonzaga 50 (12:25): A quick 10-0 scoring run put the Trojans up by double-digits early in the second half. Agbo finished off an and-1 play over Stromer then knocked down a 3-pointer moments later.

USC 47, Gonzaga 45 (15:05): Bulldogs struggled to find the bottom of the basket to start the second half, as they missed eight of their first 10 field goal attempts. Williams knocked down his second 3-pointer of the night of a transition opportunity.

HALFTIME: Gonzaga 39, USC 37: Huff was in the right place in the right time to beat the first-half buzzer, as the Zags headed to the locker room with a 2-point lead after the redshirt sophomore followed Battle's miss with a putback layup in the final seconds. Gonzaga shot 11-of-30 (36.7%) from the field but had 14 second-chance points and had 11 points off eight USC turnovers. Battle led all scorers with 12 points. Yale transfer Matt Knowling led the Trojans with nine points.

FIRST HALF:

Gonzaga 33, USC 30 (3:36): Jun Seok Yeo knocked down a pair of free throws after being fouled in transition. Fourteen of the Bulldogs' first 33 points came via the charity stripe.

Gonzaga 31, USC 30 (6:36): Ajayi capped off a 12-5 scoring burst for the Zags with a 3-pointer right in front of the Trojans' bench. Gregg set up the shot with an offensive rebound from his own miss. Gregg and Ajayi each had a dunk to jumpstart the scoring run.

USC 25, Gonzaga 18 (7:52): Saint Thomas extended the Trojans' lead with a layup inside off a feed from Josh Cohen, who had a midrange jumper fall just moments prior.

USC 15, Gonzaga 11 (11:42): The Bulldogs offense continued to struggle to generate open shots, ads they started 3-of-11 from the field and had as many turnovers and field goals made through roughly 10 minutes of play. Physical game on both ends of the floor. Each team reached the bonus before the midway point in the half.

Gonzaga 6, USC 6 (15:30): Neither the Bulldogs nor Trojans came out of the gate scorching, as they combined to shoot 3-of-10 through the first five minutes of play. Khalif Battle had Gonzaga's two field goals out of the gate. The 6-foot-5 guard knocked down a midrange jumper and a wide-open 3-pointer.

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Cole Forsman
COLE FORSMAN

Cole Forsman is a reporter for Gonzaga Bulldogs On SI. Cole holds a degree in Journalism and Sports Management from Gonzaga University.

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