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USC men’s basketball faces Seton Hall in search of big help

E.Nelson3 months ago

LOS ANGELES — Last week, when this USC squad was so ravaged by injuries that they were running a 6-foot-9 kid at shooting guard in lineups they’d never even thought of playing, Coach Andy Enfield issued a plain commandment coming off a messy loss to UCI .

“We’re gonna play big,” Enfield said. “We have no choice ... we gotta get the ball inside. Our big guys have to do a better job of finishing.”

Boogie Ellis and Kobe Johnson, the team’s leaders, were back after all against Brown. But both were less than 100% and transfer forward DJ Rodman was the latest to wind up in street clothes.

And USC, quite simply, did not do a better job of finishing. Or playing big.

In the first half of a win when Ellis eventually took over , no big made a single shot, exacerbating clear holes on this team’s roster. If the Trojans’ size isn’t finishing at the rim, or boxing out capably, outmatched opponents can hang around; and indeed, the Bears played USC tough all night Sunday.

“We’re looking for our big guys – who wants to go to the boards every time on the offensive end and defensive end, who wants to run the floor, who wants to set great screens, and who wants to finish in the lane ... if you can do those things, you play a lot of minutes for our team,” Enfield said.

And that big-man rotation is anything less than finalized. On Sunday, Enfield searched throughout all four quarters for consistency, giving Vincent Iwuchukwu a look to start the second half before turning back to steady starter Josh Morgan to close. With its armada of playmakers and freshman Isaiah Collier dishing off picks, USC needs consistent release valves to roll hard and finish consistently at the rim – Morgan, a mature defensive presence who has shot 14 for 17 from the field this year, is the steadiest hand there.

“There’s been some times where I haven’t been really, looking to score ... sometimes I have to step into that role,” Morgan said before the season.

Behind him, though, is a range of question marks. Harrison Hornery, that 6-9 body out of place at the two-guard against UCI, has had some flashes of solid rebounding and outside shooting but is limited offensively. Returner Kijani Wright has yet to establish a consistent presence, and freshman Arrinten Page is gifted but has struggled at the rim.

Down the stretch, Iwuchukwu seems the best bet to provide consistent minutes behind Morgan; he’s still rounding into form after an extended struggle with back issues, though, and Enfield mentioned his timing has just been slightly off offensively and defensively.

“If we can maximize his potential this year,” Johnson said, “I think it’ll be very, very beneficial for us.”

A Rady Children’s Invitational tournament matchup with Seton Hall on Thanksgiving Day brings a further chance for USC to load its plate with rotational options – facing a 4-0 Pirates team that hasn’t seen a single player over 6-5 average as much as 20 minutes per game.