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USC Men's Basketball Falls at Utah, 79-65
February 23, 2020 | Men's Basketball, Features
The pair of road games in the Rocky Mountains proved to be overwhelming for the Trojans (19-9, 8-7 Pac-12).
After falling at No. 18 Colorado, 70-66 on Thursday, USC dropped the latter game of its road trip on a 79-65 loss to Utah in Salt Lake City on Sunday.
Despite an 18-point, 12-rebound performance from Onyeka Okongwu — the freshman forward's 10th double-double — the Trojans saw the rest of their frontcourt get depleted.
Senior Nick Rakocevic (illness) started the game but only logged five minutes. Freshman Isaiah Mobley suffered an ankle injury late in the first half and only played four minutes at the start of the second.
Both teams struggled from the free-throw line as USC finished 6-of-16 (37.5%) while Utah (14-12, 5-9 Pac-12) shot 15-of-24 (62.5%).
TURNING POINT
The Trojans had tied the game at 25 with 4:09 left in the first half on Ethan Anderson's layup but immediately faced a scoring drought. Utah went on a 9-3 run to go into halftime and opened the second half with a 9-4 stretch.USC trimmed the deficit to four points midway into the second half and used a couple runs to remain in the game but could not complete the comeback.
Trojans on an 8-0 run! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/FUm7gfV7hq
— USC Men's Basketball (@USC_Hoops) February 24, 2020
PAC-12 RACE
USC stands two games behind a top-four seed needed for a first-round bye at the Pac-12 Tournament in March.The Trojans play their final three games at home — all against top-five teams in the current Pac-12 standings.
USC hosts No. 24 Arizona on Thursday (White-Out/Social Media Night) and will face conference leader Arizona State (Youth Basketball Night) on Saturday.
The Trojans close the regular season on March 7 at the Galen Center against crosstown rival UCLA, which is on a five-game winning streak and has won nine of its last eleven.
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