Tag: Joshua Morgan

Joshua Morgan flies under the radar in USC win over Stanford

Joshua Morgan has to become a consistent contributor for USC to reach its potential.

The three-man show of Kobe Johnson, Isaiah Collier, and Boogie Ellis combined for 69 points in USC’s 93-79 win over Stanford on Saturday at the Galen Center.

However, there is one interesting stat line from the Trojans’ win: Joshua Morgan. He had 4 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks in 26 minutes, filling the stat sheet in a number of categories.

DJ Rodman led the Trojans in scoring off the bench with 9 points, but Morgan found a way to chip in on a number of different levels in the game, and that’s a big boost for Andy Enfield’s team. The Trojans still are trying to find an identity heading into January.

Interestingly enough, Morgan took just one shot and made it, but he was still effective all around for USC. If he can pass the ball and rebound with more consistency, USC might be able to improve.

The Trojans next play Washington State in L.A. on Wednesday night and then hit the road for a three-game stretch against Colorado, Arizona, and Arizona State, a road trip which just might define their season.

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USC lacks a traditional power forward and might have to play two centers at times

Andy Enfield has to make the pieces of the puzzle fit.

USC has an elite backcourt, which means it will play smaller lineups for a good portion of the coming season. However, big lineups could serve a purpose for the Trojans. Kevin Sweeney of Sports Illustrated explained:

“There would be a lot of benefits for USC to play bigger and try to dominate people on the glass, protect the rim, especially given how good a rim protector Josh Morgan is,” Sweeney said. “I also think they are at least athletic enough and mobile enough that they hold their own switching onto the perimeter against smaller guys at the four. They’re going to have to be able to play both ways. I think they do lack that traditional four. I think that will hurt them at times this year just because of teams able to exploit matchups at that spot. But optionality is a good thing, and I think USC has the opportunity to play multiple ways, which a lot of teams wish they had.”

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Oklahoma fans were right about Lincoln Riley, at least for this specific season.

USC assistants need to be coaching for their jobs.

Lincoln Riley did not assemble an elite 2023 roster, which surprised us and a lot of other observers.

Is USC ready to win in 2024 with Miller Moss or Malachi Nelson at quarterback? Lincoln Riley has to be honest about how he answers that question.

Brent Venables is coaching Oklahoma far better this year than Lincoln Riley is coaching USC. It’s up to Riley to change that reality.

Josh Morgan, Kijani Wright show signs of growth heading into next season

Bummed about this loss? You should be. Bummed about the state of #USC hoops? You shouldn’t be. Young guys have upside for 2024.

The USC Trojans are out of the NCAA Tournament after another first-round loss, this time coming at the hands of the Michigan State Spartans and Tom Izzo, 72-62.

The careers of Drew Peterson and Boogie Ellis in a Trojans uniform have come to an end, and this team will once again see some drastic changes after losing the Mobley brothers over the past couple of seasons.

While the offensive performance wasn’t pretty for USC, there are two players that should give Andy Enfield hope going into the summer: Kijani Wright and Josh Morgan.

With Vincent Iwuchukwu missing the game with an injury, Morgan stepped up and led the team in scoring with 14 points on 7-9 from the field and 5 rebounds.

The junior forward should be an integral part of USC’s team next season, assuming he returns to Southern California for another year.

Kijani Wright played sparingly in this game against the Spartans, finishing with just 1 point with a rebound, assist, and block. However, Wright earned more playing time toward the end of the season, and the freshman forward from Los Angeles will definitely see a massive increase in usage with Peterson and Ellis leaving this offseason.

Yes, it’s another early exit for Enfield and USC, but the future remains bright in Trojans Land.

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Joshua Morgan injured vs Washington State; other Trojans will need to step up vs Washington

With Vince Iwuchukwu on a minutes restriction, the injury to Morgan means other #USC players will need to steal minutes on Saturday vs Washington.

USC starting big man Joshua Morgan got injured early in Thursday’s win over Washington State. Morgan played just five minutes, forcing the Trojans to scramble to find other minutes and compensate for his absence.

Andy Enfield gave six minutes to Kijani Wright, four to Harrison Hornery, and two to Iaroslav Niagu. Those 12 minutes weren’t very impactful on a night when Washington State’s Mouhamed Gueye torched the Trojans for 31 points. However, with Vince Iwuchukwu (Morgan’s backup) on a minutes restriction due to health concerns, Enfield didn’t have much of a choice.

Morgan was on crutches and his ankle was in a boot after the injury on Thursday night. It’s hard to imagine him playing on Saturday evening against Washington (6:30 p.m. local time in Los Angeles).

The good news about playing Washington is that the Huskies do not have the low-post threat posed by Gueye of Washington State. Washington relies on its guards and wing shooters for offense. The Huskies play a lot of zone defense, which opens up opportunities for opponents to rebound against Washington.

Enfield will need to find minutes for Wright and Niagu, who have a chance to develop as players and learn by doing against Washington. Neither player needs to score a single point to make a meaningful contribution to the USC rotation. As long as they can defend and rebound, they will offer something very important to the Trojans. If they can develop as defensive players as a result of getting more playing time in place of Joshua Morgan, USC could cultivate depth at a few unexpected positions on the roster heading into March.

It’s time to see what USC’s frontcourt bench looks like. It’s scary, but the Trojans really don’t have other options at this point.

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