Pac-12 Tournament: USC makes winning ugly work

The No. 3 seed Trojans, who open in the quarterfinals Thursday night, are 9-1 in games decided by five or fewer points this season

Adam Grosbard (OC Register)  —  LOS ANGELES — Andy Enfield cheerfully objects to the idea that his USC team wins ugly at times. Sure, games might be close, but, he says with a smile, “I think wins are pretty.”

Nevertheless, winning ugly is exactly what USC has done this season. The Trojans are 9-1 in games decided by five points or fewer.

There was Boogie Ellis’ jumper with 0.2 seconds left to beat Washington State. And Drew Peterson’s 3-pointer to give USC the lead over Oregon with 11.5 seconds left and the Trojans stopping the Ducks twice to secure the win. And who can forget the intercepted in-bounds pass at the end of regulation against UCLA, which the Bruins nearly turned into a game-tying buzzer-beater?

This is not to poke holes in USC’s résumé. The 21st-ranked Trojans are 25-6 for many reasons. One is USC’s ability to pull out difficult wins, a talent that should come in use as the third-seeded Trojans begin the postseason Thursday in Las Vegas at the Pac-12 Tournament against the winner of Wednesday night’s late game between No. 6 seed Washington (16-14) and No. 11 Utah (11-19).

This is perhaps to be expected from a veteran team that went to the Elite Eight a year ago. The Trojans’ three NCAA Tournament wins were all by double digits, but USC learned how to play the type of team defense that wins games.

So if the Trojans put together timely shots with that level of defensive execution, Enfield reasons, the team will win most of its games, a theory that’s been proven out this year.

It’s that March experience from last year that has USC feeling confident entering the postseason now, compared to a year ago when Chevez Goodwin was the only player with NCAA Tournament experience.

“This year we can go in with a different mindset knowing what we need to do to get there,” point guard Ethan Anderson said. “This year, we hope to go farther than we did last year. So now we come in with experience, knowing that every possession counts.”

That lesson from last March has been reinforced numerous times this season as USC has put together the most regular-season wins in program history. Just last week, the Trojans got a reminder as their comeback attempt against UCLA fell short due to a missed layup and an untimely turnover in the final minute of the game.

But experience isn’t the only reason USC is confident in close games. The players trust teammates like Ellis, Peterson and Isaiah Mobley to score when the game is on the line, while Chevez Goodwin, Max Agbonkpolo and Anderson have proved they can hold down the fort defensively for key stops.

“I think we have players that just show up when it comes late to games,” Anderson said. “Winning is just the common goal. I think that’s why we’re going to make a big run here because we all understand if we lose two games, we’re going home.”

PAC-12 TOURNAMENT

Quarterfinal game: No. 3 seed USC vs. No. 6 seed Washington or No. 11 seed Utah

When: Thursday, 8:30 p.m.

Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas

TV: Pac-12 Network

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