USC
Middle Tennessee
Players Mentioned
Metu Scores 27, USC Defeats Middle Tennessee 89-84
December 23, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Features
HONOLULU (AP) — Chimezie Metu scored 27 points and Bennie Boatwright added 23 as USC held off Middle Tennessee 89-84 on Saturday in the semifinals of the Diamond Head Classic.
The Trojans (8-4) saw five players score in double-figures. Elijah Stewart added 13 points, Jordan McLaughlin 11, and Shaqquan Aaron 10.
USC shot 57.8 percent (26 of 45) from the field, including a clip of 68.2 percent (15 of 22) in the second half. It shot 11 of 21 on 3-pointers and was 26 of 33 from the free-throw line.
Metu, a 6-foot-11 junior forward, made 11 of his 15 field-goal attempts and grabbed nine rebounds.
Middle Tennessee held a 66-64 lead after Nick King's reverse layup with 7:42 left to play. However, Boatwright's 3-pointer from the left wing ignited an 11-2 run for a 75-68 USC lead.
King scored a game-high 28 points with 11 rebounds to lead the Blue Raiders (8-3).
BIG PICTURE
USC: After he was ejected for drawing a flagrant-2 foul in Friday's quarterfinal win over Akron, Boatwright saw 37 minutes of court time in his return against the Blue Raiders. The 6-foot-10 junior forward shot a mere 4 of 11 from the field, but made three 3-pointers and 12 of his 16 free throws to go along with six rebounds and six assists.
UP NEXT
USC will try for its third straight win in the title game Monday.
