USC closes out Washington to reach Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinals
Boogie Ellis and Isaiah Collier help the ninth-seeded Trojans win 80-74, setting up a quick rematch with top-seeded, dangerous Arizona
Luca Evans (OC Register) — LAS VEGAS — USC men’s basketball coach Andy Enfield pointed to the bullpen to summon his closer, and Isaiah Collier ambled to the scorer’s table, a brief minute of rest finished before one final fourth-quarter push.
He plays with confidence, now, and this program has confidence in him. In the beginnings of the year, Collier was mere brushstrokes of the player USC envisioned they were getting out of high school, the powerful top-ranked recruit bruising others and himself in a rough start. He scored, yes – but often played haywire in final minutes, out of control, and with the ball in his hands USC’s season too often slipped in the closing minutes.
But a few months later, Collier’s growth as a decision-maker has been ascendant. And with ninth-seeded USC clinging to a three-point lead late upon his re-entry for Bronny James, Collier’s steady hand and a pair of key free throws late closed out eighth-seeded Washington 80-74 in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament on Wednesday afternoon.
“I mean, earlier in the season, he made freshman mistakes – like, we expected it,” junior wing Kobe Johnson said after the game. “But throughout the course of this season, he’s really locked in, when we got the ball and with the lead. He’s learned how to win games for us.”
After snaring a rebound, Collier controlled the pace with time ticking under three minutes, eventually firing off a pass to USC captain Boogie Ellis on the wing. A red-hot Ellis caught and fired a deep 3-pointer in smooth rhythm, an early dagger before turning back to sparse early-afternoon stands in Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena and wagging his tongue.
Ellis finished with 25 points on 9-of-15 shooting, USC’s captain bringing his absolute best in what could be his final run in a Trojans jersey. And as the buzzer sounded and USC advanced to the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament, Johnson – who stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals – held his pointer finger up aloft: One down.
“We fixed it in the second half,” Ellis continued, “but tomorrow we can’t come out like that. Tomorrow, we’ve got to come out with a lot more energy.”
“I’m just here, just trying to get a win,” Ellis said postgame, when asked about playing Love. “I don’t really care about none of that stuff.”
Indeed, as Ellis said, USC came out lackadaisical. Washington took a quick 19-10 lead off an avalanche of 3-pointers, the Huskies’ Koren Johnson firing off one corner triple and turning to USC’s bench in a taunt before the ball had even touched net.
USC settled quickly, though, captain Kobe Johnson keying improved defensive activity with a turnover-forcing trap on Huskies top scorer Keion Brooks Jr., whom USC held to just 13 points on 4-of-16 shooting. Clean offensive sets from Enfield, generating perimeter looks on dribble handoffs, and opening interior feeds to bigs from Ellis and Collier keyed a 9-0 run in response. But Washington continued to find open gaps in any USC defensive look – zone or man – in the corners, hitting five first-half corner threes, with the Huskies’ Moses Wood catching fire with four first-half threes and a one-handed miracle buzzer-beater to put Washington up five at half.
Both offenses traded blows in the second half, Ellis coming alive, matched by shotmaking from Washington’s backcourt of Koren Johnson and Sahvir Wheeler, who combined for 37. In a tight final stretch, though, freshman Collier calmly put his finger on the pulse, euro-stepping his way to a layup to tie the game with 7:28 left and whizzing a pass to center Joshua Morgan for a dunk to put USC up the next possession.
He finished with 13 points and seven assists against three turnovers, controlling a game in which he took just six shots, a far cry from the early-season Collier that often let live balls slip through green fingers or forced layups off the rim. He’s gritted through a tumultuous season, a string of personal tragedies surfacing lingering emotions few have seen, facing a litany of external pressures from his role as USC’s engine to his future draft stock. He broke his hand in January; instead of throwing in the towel on his season, he pushed to return as quickly as possible, watching a litany of film on close-game mistakes as his IQ grew off the court.
“It was just, getting back to being me,” Collier told the Southern California News Group in the locker room postgame.
And USC is making a push now in Vegas, behind him.
Wheeler finished with 20 points for the now-eliminated Huskies and Wood had 17.
James had seven points, including three crucial late free throws, and five rebounds in a major defensive impact for USC.
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USC proves to be no contest for a motivated, intensely-focused ARIZ team, and is crushed 70 – 49. ARIZ had wide-open 3s all game long and played great D.
Clearly Arizona was going through the motions last week. The question is, does Enfield keep his job? He has some very good guards but not much in dominating big guys in the paint. I think Jen Cohen can do better than staying with Enfield.
Personally, I don’t believe Enfield is in any danger. USC’s realistic basketball expectations have never been big. Maybe hopeful. Maybe supporting a low-level March Madness entrant. But never justifiably huge, like ARIZ, which is always shooting for #1 seeds. JMHO.
In 30 mins, 15-17 USC takes on 24-7 ARIZ at noon on the P12 Network.
The Wildcats last played five days ago on March 9, losing big to USC at Galen 78 – 65.
ARIZ has not lost two games in a row in three years.
It’ll also be somewhat like a home game for ARIZ at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with so many more Wildcat fans filling the stands.
ARIZ is a nine-pt fave and they are shooting for their 3rd straight P12 Tourney win.
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ESPN Names USC’s JuJu Watkins National Player of the Year Runner-Up Behind Caitlin Clark, and Freshman of the Year She’s also on ESPN’s All-America Team in her first season as a Trojan ESPN — The hype surrounding Watkins coming out of high school was as big as the sport has ever seen. Now 31 games and a Pac-12 tournament title later, Watkins somehow exceeded all those expectations. She put a good Trojans team on her back game after game and made it great. If not for Clark’s brilliance, could this have been the first of four Player of the… Read more »
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This is probably Darnold’s last big chance to make it as a starting QB.
He has the talent and can make all the throws.
It is between the ears that he has problems.
Reading the field and making good decisions.
Lately he has been getting better and finally got good coaching
with the 49s.
I agree usc50 but look at who Darnold has endured as far as coaches go. Should have had Sark but the sauce got in the way. Then Clay who was never a QB whisperer. In the NFL Jets and then Panthers. Nobody there of much use. I’m sure he learned something while in San Fran from Kyle. I’m cheering for him. Minnesota is definitely an interesting looking group this year.
This is a great shot, a terrific opportunity for Darnold. It’s time for him to show he can be a reliable starter who isn’t a pick machine.
As you point out, he’s been in too many less-than-supportive situations during his career because of both his surrounding cast and inferior coaching.
Denver lost out here for Darnold, and it’ll be interesting to see who Sean Payton goes after in the Draft with pick #12 to get his Broncos back on track.