USC men’s basketball put up a very good fight against the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday evening in the Galen Center. The Trojans were down 13 points midway through the second half against a talented opponent. They easily could have folded the tent. They easily could have called it a day. Instead, they rallied and not only tied the game but very briefly took a lead. This team has grown a lot since a brutal November in which a new roster comprised of transfers was going through inevitable growing pains. Coach Eric Musselman had a lot of work to do.
We saw a lot of evolution from USC against Michigan. In the first half, the Trojans made it hard for Michigan’s bigs, Danny Wolf and Vlad Goldin, to finish at the rim. One could not have imagined USC’s defense being that good a month ago.
At halftime, however, Michigan coach Dusty May was able to devise halfcourt sets which isolated the bigs without double-team help from the Trojans. Michigan created a layup line and was able to get to the rim very consistently. The Wolverines were in a dogfight, up only three inside the four-minute mark, but they pulled away late for an 85-74 win.
USC is making progress, even if the results don’t show it. If the Trojans can shoot just a little better from the perimeter, they could still become a really good team this season.