Basketball: USC dominates Washington, wins fourth straight Pac-12 game
It's been a rough season for the Washington basketball team and USC made easy work of the Huskies on Thursday night, so it's hard to say any one or two shots were specifically important in a 95-68 win.
And yet, the Trojans' early points sure felt significant.
Tahj Eaddy knocked down his first two 3-pointers of the night as part of a 10-2 start to the game for USC, and after making just 6 of 43 3s over the last two games the Trojans connected on 7 of 19 from long-range in this one.
"It's nice to see those balls go in because it's a big part of our team," coach Andy Enfield said. "We have a really good front line, they can score in the post, score around the rim, and we need to spread the floor. The last two games it was hard. It's hard when three or four guys, five guys are in the paint. It really hurts your offense. ... Our guards need to make shots, and tonight I thought they did a great job."
Isaiah Mobley had a team-high 18 points and made his only 3-point try, Evan Mobley had 17 points and 6 rebounds, Chevez Goodwin chipped in 12 points, Drew Peterson scored 14 (2 of 5 from 3-point range) with 7 rebounds, Eaddy had 10 (2 of 4 from long distance) and Isaiah White added 9 points in the big win at Galen Center.
That early 10-2 lead was just the start as the Trojans (10-2, 4-1 Pac-12) went into halftime with a 44-23 lead, punctuated by back-to-back dunks from Goodwin and Boubacar Coulibaly. USC shot 50.8 percent overall from the field while matching his season high for points.
"Definitely it always feels good to see the ball go through the basket," Eaddy said. "Obviously as a collective we haven't shot well the past couple games, so seeing the ball go through the net early definitely felt good."
Said Evan Mobley: "It opened things up a lot. Anytime I get in the post and they double down and I can kick it out and they hit a 3, it [forces] them not to double as hard or as much."
The other major storyline from the game was the return of point guard Ethan Anderson, who had missed the last eight games with a back injury. He only played 14 minutes, finishing with 3 points and 2 assists, but his return will put the Trojans at full strength once he builds up his minutes again.
"He was consistent, made a couple nice passes, had two assists early, and he made one or two passes that he's the only guy on the team who can throw those. So it's nice to have his creativity," Enfield said. "He just needs to get in playing shape and get acclimated back to the speed and the intensity because he hasn't practiced with us live other than one day. He feels a lot better, he's healthy and we're excited to get him back."
Enfield suggested Anderson might play receive a similar workload Saturday vs. Washington State.
Again, the Huskies are entrenched at the bottom of the Pac-12 standings at 1-10 overall and 0-6 in the conference, so this win on its own isn't necessarily a statement-maker for USC. But the way the Trojans overcame the loss of Anderson for a month and a half and their overall start to the season are highly encouraging.
