USC creates right ball movement in drubbing over the Huskies

The 17th-ranked Trojans set season-high marks in assists (28) and assist-to-field goal ratio (28-to-30) in a 79-69 victory that was not as close as the final score suggests

Adam Grosbard (OC Register)  —  LOS ANGELES — USC guard Boogie Ellis pump-faked and drove in a few steps, drawing Washington defenders with him. He spotted Max Agbonkpolo with space on the perimeter and zipped the ball to him. When the Huskies closed on the open shooter, Agbonkpolo pushed the ball to Isaiah Mobley open on the baseline.

The play held little significance in the outcome of the game, a 79-69 win for the Trojans that was not as close as the final score suggested. But it was one of many examples of the precise and persistent ball movement No. 17 USC (22-4 overall, 11-4 Pac-12) displayed against the Huskies (13-11, 8-6) on Thursday night at the Galen Center.

USC set a season-high in assists (28) and assist-to-field goal ratio (28-to-30) in the victory. The Trojans assisted on 25 of their first 26 baskets, the lone exception being a first-half putback by Chevez Goodwin, who led USC with a season-high 24 points.

Mobley, back after missing two games with concussion-like symptoms, led the Trojans with eight assists and no turnovers to go with 12 points. Guard Drew Peterson followed up his career night against UCLA with a 14-point, seven-assist performance.

“We’ve been preaching it all season. It’s going to take all of us,” Mobley said. “I think that showed tonight.”

A Washington zone forced USC into moving the ball around to find weak spots. Frequently, those occurred under the basket. Mobley, clad in a black face mask to protect his broken nose, twice found Goodwin under the basket late in the shot clock for layups.

“That was the game plan; we had to share the basketball, their zone is very good,” head coach Andy Enfield said. “The unselfish play of our guys tonight was really good.”

Boogie Ellis later fed Goodwin for a two-handed dunk just before the buzzer went off. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Ellis and Peterson followed by a Goodwin baby hook fueled an 11-0 run by the Trojans to close the first half.

Goodwin made six of his first seven attempts and scored half of USC’s first 28 points. He got going early on as Peterson ran with a long rebound and passed it up ahead to Goodwin with an open path to the basket for a dunk and USC’s first points.

The senior captain shook his head back and forth for emphasis in front of the USC student section and Utah Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell, seated courtside.

Goodwin knew he would be the beneficiary of Washington’s zone, but also had a little extra motivation with his father in town from South Carolina for the game.

“My dad’s my biggest critic. He flew in yesterday and he was like, ‘I don’t want to see you. Don’t come see me until after the game,’” Goodwin said. “So I knew if I was going to see him after the game, he was either going to critique me on how good I played or how bad I played. So I was like I gotta give him everything I got.”

USC’s lead grew as large as 23 points in the second half before Washington went on a 9-0 run to cut it to 14. Enfield tried to call a timeout, but the Trojans had already used up their allotment and the coach was called for a technical foul.

Terrell Brown Jr. hit both free throws, but USC quickly answered with an Ethan Anderson feed to Mobley for a layup followed by another Goodwin basket.

It wasn’t a perfect effort. Eleven second-half turnovers let Washington cut into the margin late. But after some struggles to start games strong, USC was pleased with Thursday’s effort.

“It proves to ourselves that we’re improving as a team,” Goodwin said. “It was definitely a statement win just showing that we weren’t off emotion playing UCLA.”

ocregister.com

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