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17-6,6-4Pac-12
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16-6,6-3Pac-12
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USC Men's Basketball's Comeback Bid Falls Short in 85-80 Loss At No. 23 Arizona
February 06, 2020 | Men's Basketball, Features
After slipping to a 10-point deficit at halftime, the Trojans (17-6, 6-4Â Pac-12) conceded a 10-0 run that put the Wildcats (16-6, 6-3 Pac-12) up 61-41 near the midway point of the second half.
USC remained resilient and slowly limited the deficit later in the game. The Trojans did not allow any field goals in the final 8:20 and Jonah Mathews' 3-pointer with five seconds left cut the Wildcats' lead to three points.
Arizona shot 21-for-31 from the free throw line in the second half and made its final pair following Mathews' 3-pointer to keep the game out of reach.
Mathews and fellow senior Nick Rakocevic did not start for the Trojans due to violating team rules. Isaiah Mobley and Quinton Adlesh took their places in Thursday's lineup. Rakocevic still finished with 18 points on 8-11 shooting and seven rebounds while Mathews scored six points.
Jonah #Math3ws' triple makes it 83-80 Arizona with 3.7 seconds to go. pic.twitter.com/dZCfeeQ7bM
— USC Men's Basketball (@USC_Hoops) February 7, 2020
The Trojans led for just 36 seconds when they were up twice in the game's first six minutes.
Nico Mannion had 20 points and 7 assists for Arizona. Zeke Nnaji and Josh Green each contributed 18 points for the Wildcats.
USC, coming off two straight losses to ranked teams, wraps up its road trip in the desert with a game at Arizona State on Saturday. The Trojans return to Galen Center next week for a homestand against the Washington schools.
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