Rapid Recap: USC men's basketball wins big again, 89-63, over Montana State

Rapid Recap: USC men’s basketball wins big again, 89-63, over Montana State

Posted by Admin December 16, 2024 Basketball

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USC’s blowout win over Washington wasn’t a one off. The Trojans steamrolled Montana State, 89-63, inside the Galen Center Sunday night, eight days after crushing Washington 85-61 on the road.

USC held Montana State to 21 first-half points and 32.8 percent shooting on the night. In the blink of an eye, USC led 18-2 thanks to two three-pointers from Chibuzo Agbo, two buckets from Desmond Claude and baskets from Wesley Yates III Rashaun Agee, Saint Thomas and Josh Cohen.

USC’s best moment came when Clark Slajchert dished a nifty underhanded pass to a cutting Agee, and the big man threw down a ferocious dunk to give USC a 29-8 edge in the first half.

Claude led all scorers with 19 points. Thomas added 17 points. Agbo scored 12 while Agee had 10 off the bench. Eleven different Trojans scored, and USC shot 50.8 percent from the field. The Trojans dominated the rebounding battle over the Bobcats, 49-27, and had a huge advantage at the rim with a +20 advantage (48-28) on points in the paint.

Brandon Walker led Montana State with 14 points. Montana State’s second-leading scorer this season, former Trojan Max Agbonkpolo, struggled to deal with foul trouble that kept him off the court for long stretches. He made two of his first three shots but missed his final six attempts to finish with five points.

The victory improved USC’s record to 7-4 on the season. Montana State dropped to 5-6.

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Player of the Game: Saint Thomas

Saint Thomas. (Photo: Ahmad Akkaoui | USCfootball.com)

The honor could have gone to either Thomas or Claude. Thomas scored 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting with seven rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals. His rebound, assist, block and steal numbers all either led USC outright or tied for the team lead. Thomas has scored more points in USC’s last two games (36) than he did in the team’s previous five games combined (25). Claude had six rebounds and three assists to go with his 19 points.

Key Stat: 3

After allowing Saint Mary’s, New Mexico and UT-Arlington to shoot better than 50 percent from the floor in games earlier this year, USC has held three straight opponents to under 40 percent shooting from the field. Eric Musselman resorted to USC playing five-on-five in practice in an effort to improve the team’s defense after a porous showing in Palm Springs for the Acrisure Series Thanksgiving week. That adjustment has unquestionably worked.

Injury Updates: Every scholarship player outside of Terrance Williams, who broke his wrist against Oregon, was available against Montana State. Agee appeared to cramp in the second half at the 9:51 mark. He did not return. Agee’s status will be something to note moving forward.

What’s Next: Two more non-conference showdowns

USC will host Cal State Northridge Wednesday night at 7:00 and Southern next Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Cal State Northridge is 7-3 on the season, with one of its wins coming over Montana State, 72-69. Forwards Marcus Adams and Keonte Jones lead the Matadores in scoring at 15.2 and 14.9 points per game respectively. Jones also averages a team-high 8.4 rebounds per game.