USC Basketball: Shorthanded Trojans Lose to UC Irvine, Suffer First Loss of Young Season

Not what the Trojans were expecting on Tuesday night.

The No. 16-ranked USC Trojans men's basketball program lost on Tuesday night to the unranked UC Irvine Anteaters, 70-60, suffering their first loss of the season in upset fashion and moving to 2-1 on the year.

The Trojans were without starters Boogie Ellis and Kobe Johnson, and that lack of guard play proved costly for the Trojans on Tuesday.

Star guard Isaiah Collier led the way for the Trojans scoring 23 points, but he struggled from the field, as he shot 6-for-18 and had seven turnovers.

Harrison Hornery was the Trojans' second-highest scorer with 17 points and a career-high four three-pointers, but it wasn't enough as the shorthanded Trojans fell to UC Irvine.

The Trojans shot just 28.8 percent from the field and 19 percent from deep as a team. They also had 15 turnovers, while UC Irvine had just seven.

Justin Hohn led the way for the Anteaters with 25 points, while Bent Leuchten followed with 19 points.

The Trojans will fall out of the top 25 ranking with this loss, but an early-season loss without two starters isn't the end of the world in college basketball.

The Trojans have a long season ahead of them, and will look to bounce back on Sunday night against Brown. Hopefully Ellis and Johnson are able to return for that matchup.