USC men win thriller in double overtime to advance in Big Ten tournament
- Share via
INDIANAPOLIS — Nothing through this tormentingly topsy-turvy season had come smoothly or simply for USC and new coach Eric Musselman, down to this brutal battle at the bitter end. Turning around the Trojans had been a gargantuan task from the day he inherited the team. Then injuries decimated what depth he’d built. Big Ten travel took its toll. And a frustrating February sapped the season of its hope, leaving USC to limp its way, just barely, into its new conference’s tournament.
All of those slipups and setbacks and learning experiences, it seems, had been leading them here, to one final stand that fittingly stretched into one overtime, then another, until finally the Trojans stood alone, extending their season for at least one more day with a 97-89 win over Rutgers in Wednesday’s first round of the Big Ten tournament.
“We keep winning,” guard Chibuzo Agbo said, “and everything is forgotten. We’re just playing for our lives right now. No one wants this to end.”
Surviving Purdue, the conference’s No. 5 seed, when the teams meet Thursday night surely will require an even more harrowing effort. After all, it was only a month ago that the Boilermakers beat up on the Trojans, who fell into a tailspin, losing five in a row.
But after Wednesday, and all they’d withstood, it felt like — for one night at least — anything might be possible this March.
And to think, it all seemed to be slipping away with just over a minute left in regulation. USC trailed by four, after leading by as many as 15, when Wesley Yates III took off, knifing through a crowd of Rutgers defenders at a sprint.
The 6-foot-4 freshman originally was recruited by Washington, where assistant Quincy Pondexter discovered they were cousins. They’ve been like brothers ever since.
He’d played hero so often through an unexpected breakout season, and Wednesday would be no different, as the redshirt freshman played every one of the game’s 50 minutes, shooting 70% and pouring in 24 points along the way. But as the final minute ticked desperately down, Yates lost control at half court. The ball came loose, and Rutgers recovered. It was one of 21 turnovers for USC, their most all season.
A timeout was called. In the huddle, Musselman reminded his team how long it had been since it had gotten a stop.
At that point, a single bucket might’ve done in the Trojans. But in a matter of just five seconds, a missed lay-in turned into a breakaway for Yates.
With 19 seconds remaining in regulation, Rutgers’ Jeremiah Williams stood at the free throw line with another chance to sink USC. Both free throws clanked away instead, leaving Rutgers’ lead at two.
That’s when Desmond Claude took his turn playing hero. No one had been more important to the Trojans all season, and at their most desperate moment, their point guard delivered, soaring through a crowded lane for a tying floater. He finished with 28 points, none more important than the two that sent it to overtime.
“We wanted this game,” Claude said. “The tournament, we thought we came in 0-0. We wanted to keep winning.”
Neither team led by more than two in the first overtime. But with 1:36 left, Rutgers star guard Dylan Harper, who scored 27, lost the ball, and players on both teams dove into a sea of flailing limbs to secure it.
Eric Musselman faced an uphill climb from his first day at USC, but he has made real, tangible progress.
It was Rashaun Agee who emerged from the pile with ball in hand, capping a stellar 23-point, 11-rebound night. Claude was fouled soon after that, sinking two free throws that Rutgers matched soon after.
The point guard seized control in the second overtime, flying fearlessly down the baseline for an up-and-under lay-in. On the next possession, Agee pulled up from deep and sunk a three. USC never looked back.
As the second overtime wore on, it occurred to Musselman that his team seemed to have more energy than it did in regulation.
“Sometimes it’s like a boxing match, you know what I mean?” Musselman said. “Somebody has to persevere.”
Musselman had been through his own gauntlet, sick ever since the team had touched down in Indianapolis. He was coughing and congested and hadn’t slept a wink the previous night.
But the coach, like his battle-tested Trojans, fought through it, determined to keep this frustrating first season afloat at least one day longer.
