Written by Sarah Bergstrom, USC blog contributor
The Trojans battled with the Aggies down to the wire and emerged victorious, winning their fourth straight game of the season.
Click here for the recap and final stats.
Awesome Offense
The last time USC scored at least 85 points was November 12, 2013 vs. Cal State Northridge. On Sunday, the Trojans turned up the heat on offense, shooting 50 percent from the field with four players hitting double figures. Contributing to the awesome offensive effort was the Trojans' 22 total assists, led by Katin Reinhardt who had five assists in the first half. Also impressive, Darion Clark grabbed 13 of the team's 36 total rebounds (one off of his season-high mark).
Career Day
The win was also a career day for three Trojans as Nikola Jovanovic (23) and Strahinja Gavrilovic (13) tied their career-high scoring records and Jordan McLaughlin (21) set a new career-high mark. McLaughlin leads the team in scoring as a freshman averaging 11.9 points per game in the first eight games. Not only did these three players have career shooting days but the 50 percent shooting from the field is the best the team has shot all season. Head coach Andy Enfield has been increasingly impressed with Jovanovic's play this season. "I thought he underperformed most of the season and I thought he's really played well the last few games," he said. "You're starting to see the player we thought he'd be and the player he wants to be. He had an excellent game today, he has to keep improving. He has a terrific work ethic, so we expect him to develop into something special."
Heating Up
The Trojans are on a four-game winning streak heading into the holiday season with only three games left in 2014. In the past four games, the Trojans have had a different leading scorer, revealing the talented depth of the USC lineup. The current streak ties the Trojans' longest winning streak from last year when the team won four games from November 12 to 24. "We are definitely heading in the right place now with four wins in a row," said McLaughlin after the game. "We're getting better after every game, after every practice and after every film session. We are looking to keep going up, the sky's the limit."
Here are the SnappyTV highlights, including Julian Jacobs' monster alley oop:
University Southern California Trojans
Saturday, September 05
Saturday, September 05
Saturday, September 05
Saturday, September 05
