USC Dominates BYU In Defensive Clinic

USC put on a defensive clinic and used efficient shooting to dominate BYU by 26 points in the Roman Legends Classic on Tuesday afternoon.

USC faced its first true test of the season when they traveled to Connecticut to play BYU in the Roman Legends Classic, and the Trojans aced their test. Evan Mobley finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds to lead USC to a 79-53 victory. The Trojans defense dominated the Cougars all afternoon in the blowout win.

USC finished the first half on a 10-0 run to take a 31-20 lead into halftime, and never looked back. The Trojans would double their lead to 22 within the first five minutes of the second half to blow the game wide open. Andy Enfield’s team led for more than 35 minutes of the game.

The Trojans defense was phenomenal all afternoon. They held BYU to their season-low 53 points on 27.5% from the field and a poor 23% from beyond the arc. The Cougars previous low on the season was 82 points. To add, only two BYU players finished in double-digits on the scoreboard. USC also dominated the glass, grabbing 50 rebounds in the win.

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Drew Peterson was the game's leading scorer with 19 points on 7-for-10 shooting from the field. Tahj Eaddy added 16 points and four assists while Isaiah Mobley notched a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds to help the Trojans move to 3-0. Isaiah has finished with 10 rebounds or more in every game so far to lead USC.

The offense continued its efficient start to the 2020 season, shooting 53% from the field against a good BYU defense. The Trojans have now shot at least 50% from the field in each of their first three games. Evan Mobley had another strong outing from the field as well, knocking down 8-of-12 shots while showing versatility in his scoring ability, shooting from all around the court.

The 26-point win moves USC to 3-0 on the season. But even after a huge win, there’s still some room for improvement that would make USC even better early on in the season. The team shot 9-for-16 from the free throw line and is shooting 57% from the line as a team on the season after today’s game. If USC can improve its efficiency from the stripe as the college basketball year moves along, they can be a consistent top-25 team. Nonetheless, coach Enfield will be ecstatic with the blowout win of a good BYU squad.

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USC will play UConn on Thursday at 4 P.M. on ESPN in the Trojans second game of the Roman Legends Classic.

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