Basketball: USC stays unbeaten as defense sets the tone vs. San Diego State

It's still early in this USC basketball season, only non-conference play, not even December ...

But it's hard not to be genuinely impressed by these Trojans and the potential they've inspired for what this season could become -- potential greater than many might have expected after coach Andy Enfield had to replace his top two scorers from the Elite Eight team last year, including NBA lottery pick Evan Mobley.

What has emerged, very clearly, is a balanced team that has an identity on the defense end first and foremost, that plays through and off each other and moves the ball with vision and intent when it's at its best on the offensive side, and that is overall benefitting from some impressive individual player development over the offseason.

All of that was evident Friday night as the Trojans moved to 6-0 in this young season with one of their best wins yet.

No. 24 USC used a dominant run from the middle of the first half to early in the second half to pull away from San Diego State for a 58-43 victory in the Paycom Wooden Legacy tournament championship game at Anaheim Arena.

Isaiah Mobley led the way with 18 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks, Drew Peterson chipped in 16 points and Chevez Goodwin added 10 points, doing most of his damage during the pivotal stretch of the game.

"Well, we packed our toughness on the bus -- we didn't pack our free throw shooting, we were bad at the foul line -- but we told our guys we had to be the tougher team tonight," Enfield said on the postgame radio broadcast. "San Diego State is an outstanding ball club and they've been very good over the years. ... We had to be the tougher team tonight and we were."

It started rather inauspiciously for the Trojans as they missed 10 of their first 12 shots while contributing to what was an ugly offensive game overall.

The Trojans shot just 42.1 percent from the field and a woeful 6 of 18 (33.3 percent) from the free throw line, but they held San Diego State to 32.1-percent shooting while continuing to deliver reliable defense night after night.

The Aztecs (4-2) built a 13-7 lead midway through the first half before the game shifted sharply and decisively as the Trojans absolutely took over on both ends during a 25-4 run that extended into the opening minutes of the second half.

What's especially impressive is that they did it without much contribution from leading scorer Boogie Ellis, who battled through a quiet night offensively (2 points and 0 assists on 1-of-6 shooting).

The point is this USC team isn't reliant on any one player -- or at least that's what it's shown to this point.

"This is a team effort. Boogie has been our leading scorer, but he's not going to have 15, 20 points every night. The other guys have to pick him up when teams defend him," Enfield said.

Those other guys did enough Friday night.

Max Agbonkpolo started the run by banking in a layup high off the backboard on a nice cut and great pass from Ethan Anderson, Ellis rattled in a turnaround fadeaway baseline jumper and Mobley soon added a step-back 3 near the end of the shot clock.

After one of San Diego State's few baskets during the Trojans' game-stealing run, Mobley scored on a pick-and-roll layup off a nice give from Reese Dixon-Waters. Mobley followed a couple possessions later with a short jumper in the paint to salvage a possession that had broken down. And a few possessions after that, Goodwin closed the final minute of the half strong with a beautiful spin and short hook and later a rebound off an Agbonkpolo air ball that he tossed in for an easy basket and a 22-15 halftime lead.

While that was impressive, the Trojans looked even better coming out of halftime, scoring on five of their first seven possessions.

Goodwin scored an easy layup off a smooth drive and dish from Peterson, and after a San Diego State basket, Goodwin immediately struck again with a tough spin and hook in the paint before Peterson soon swished in a fadeaway jumper.

A couple possessions later Peterson threw in a quick catch and toss in off a well-executed inbounds play and then added a spin and step-back jumper to push the lead to 32-17 to cap that decisive run.

"When you play a team like San Diego State, you have to pack your toughness and your defense and that's what we did," Enfield reiterated. "Our offense sometimes struggles. We miss some easy shots, miss some free throws. We don't turn the ball over a lot, but we just have to make some shots. We're a work in progress as well. We're very happy with this tournament win, we'll get back and work on our other things this week."

It was Peterson's defense that Enfield had the most praise for after the game, as the 6-foot-9 senior guard in his second season with the Trojans has taken a noticeable leap forward with that part of his game.

He spent a lot of the night matched up against San Diego State star Matt Bradley, the former Cal standout, who managed just 3 points on 1-of-7 shooting.

"We demand everybody plays defense -- you have to play hard -- and Drew, what he did last night on Jordan Hall from St. Joe's, he was 1 for 12 from the field, and then tonight against Matt Bradley was really incredible," Enfield said. "So Drew has really improved, he's bought in 100 percent to the defensive effort and he's getting a lot better. We need that effort."

Goodwin, meanwhile, continues to look like a transformed player on the offensive end, as the 6-foot-9 redshirt senior has morphed from a guy who averaged 5.3 points per game a season ago to a more confident finisher in the paint who ranks second on the team with 13.2 PPG and also second with 7.5 rebounds per game. He was an efficient 5 of 6 from the field in this one.

And then of course there's Mobley, the junior who flirted with the NBA after last season following a strong NCAA tournament run, but chose to return and try to put together a complete season building off the growth he demonstrated in the 2021 postseason.

He managed to bounce back from his worst offensive game of the month -- after scoring just 4 points on 2-of-8 shooting in USC's 70-55 win over St. Joseph's in the tournament opener Thursday -- with a season-high 18 points (albeit on 7-of-19 shooting) vs. the Aztecs.

"They was playing off me a little bit and my coaches told me 'It's going to be a big in the paint game for you, so you've got to take advantage,'" Mobley said. "I feel it's something I've been working on too so it was a great test for me. There's some ones I could have still made, but I'm proud of myself and proud of my team for putting me in that position."

The Trojans were without injured key cog Isaiah White for a second straight game, who is another valuable boost to the rotation when healthy.

Overall, USC is now holding opponents to just 58.3 points and 34.4-percent shooting for the season. (They ranked 12th nationally in field goal percentage defense entering the game).

"We've been waiting for a big-time team like SDSU to really show we can really guard. I feel we did that tonight," Mobley said. "It was a messy, grind-out, hard game, but we pulled it out and I'm happy for my team."

Pac-12 play begins for USC on Wednesday when it hosts Utah. Enfield reiterated that his team is a work in progress still, but the results are the results.

"You can't be better than 6-0 so we feel pretty good," Enfield said.