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Southern Cal is a bad team. UCLA held Southern Cal to 16 points in the first half on 24% shooting. But in the second half last place Southern Cal out-played UCLA and shot 56% and outscored UCLA 38-33.
Why did this happen? One reason: Coach Ben Howland only played seven players! See the ESPN box score. Are you kidding me: Zeek played the least minutes of any starter and that was 33?!?!? I realize Anthony Stover may be hurting but why not more minutes for Powell and any minutes for Lane? CBH do you really need to play the Wears 71 minutes?!
But that is just the point. We only beat a terrible Southern Cal team by 10 points. What keyed Trojans' second half comeback? Let's discuss that after the jump.
They drove the ball. Memo to CBH: the Wears are not centers. They can’t play good help defense at center and block shots. We need Stover. Does CBH have a Wear crush? Why zero minutes for Lane? I think the Wears are better players than Lane but they are not 37 and 34 minutes better. I realize the Wears had double-doubles but they also had zero blocks against a Southern Cal team that drove at will in the second half.
The tired legs may have helped them drive as well. Jerime Anderson had a nice game but again finished shooting cold as he tried to do too much. And that is just it: the Bruins finished bad again against a really bad team.
The Bruins got the win but in some ways the terrible Southern Cal team got the moral victory.
Go Bruins