Andy Enfield shares struggles in USC's defense vs. Michigan State

In this year’s men’s NCAA tournament, USC drew Michigan State and their legendary head coach Tom Izzo as their first opponent. And that contest did not go in the Trojans’ favor. USC fell to Michigan State 72-62 in a matchup of the seven and ten seeds in the East Region. The Trojans’ defense struggled to contain the Spartans’ offense, allowing for multiple uncontested shots. And after the game, USC’s head coach Andy Enfield shared his thoughts on why his team could not get it right on the defensive side of the floor.

“Well, they have good players. And so twice early in the second half, Josh was usually outstanding in ball-screen coverage, and they split our big,” said Enfield. “And the guard was able to get to the rim and lay it in. They, around transition a few times, got some layups.

“But the fastbreak points didn’t decide the game. Points in the paint were significant.”

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Enfield has a point, as it was not just one particular facet of the game that doomed USC. The Trojans committed 18 fouls in the game — ten more than the Spartans, which allowed for 25 free throw attempts from Michigan State. And although Michigan State did not convert consistently from the line, only making 15 attempts, there makes nearly doubled USC’s attempts with eight.

USC also could have done a better job at converting their shots in the paint, according to Enfield. He saw his Trojans miss a handful of gimmie buckets that would make any head coach lose sleep at night. Not only that, but USC also lost the turnover battle committing 11 turnovers to Michigan State’s seven.

“I thought we missed about four or five at the rim. I think Kobe missed that layup early in the second half; that layup was uncontested. And it was a big call. Boogie got that offensive foul at the rim.

“They did get some paint-scoring opportunities, which is a little unusual for our defense because we’re so good against the 2. But as Drew said, sometimes things don’t go always as planned in March. And give them credit; they were able to get to the rim and finish.”

With the loss, USC’s season is now officially over. The Trojans had an impressive run this year, finishing with a 22-9 record in the regular season and 14-6 in conference play. Unfortunately, their year ends with back-to-back losses in their opening game of both the Pac-12 tournament and the NCAA tournament. Enfield will now prepare for the offseason in hopes of continuing his winning ways with the Trojans.