The USC basketball team has not started their season strong, but they had built a tiny bit of momentum with back-to-back wins to start the new year. They were against two of the Pac-12's worst teams, but still, you have to take care of business in those games, and the Trojans did. However, that momentum was squashed on Wednesday night as USC fell at home against Washington State basketball as favorites. At this point, it doesn't look like the Trojans are going to have a very good year unless some major changes happen very quickly.
This game was pretty back and forth as USC basketball got out to a good start, but Washington State closed the first half strong and took a lead into the break. Then in the second half, the Cougars started the half strong, then the Trojans fought back and made it a neck and neck battle to the finish line with each team trading blows. Washington State made the winning plays when it mattered most, however, and they pulled away in the final couple of minutes for a 72-64 win. The Trojans continue to struggle on defense when the lights are brightest.
“We've been pretty bad defensively this year,” Boogie Ellis said after the game, according to an article from ESPN.
One player that USC head coach Andy Enfield has been looking to help with the defense is Bronny James. Even though he didn't score on Wednesday, Enfield still thought he did some things well.
“He made a couple nice plays tonight,” Enfield said after the game in regards to Bronny James.
The shooting struggles for James is certainly something to keep an eye on now. He had a stretch of a few good games scoring wise, but he has now been in a slump the last two, and Wednesday against Washington State was not pretty. James finished the game with 0 points on 0-3 shooting. He didn't shoot it much, but the goose egg is never something that you want to put up.
“All players go through stretches where they make and miss shots,” Enfleid said of James and his slump. “It's a process.”
It is a process for James, and right now, finding a way to win is a process for this entire USC basketball team. After the loss, they are now 8-8 overall and 2-3 in Pac-12 play. This team has a lot of work to do to get to where they want to be.
“At the end of the day, nobody feels sorry for us,” Ellis said. “We just gotta go keep working, keep pushing.”
USC is back in action on Saturday night as they hit the road to take on Colorado.
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