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USC moves on in NCAA Tournament following blowout win over Texas A&M Corpus-Christi

Erik-McKinneyby: Erik McKinney03/23/24ErikTMcKinney
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(Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports)

The USC Trojans hadn’t played a game in nearly two weeks, but the No. 1 seed Trojans were ready to go from the opening tip against No. 16 Texas A&M Corpus-Christi on Saturday. Playing at home in Galen Center in front of a packed crowd, USC ran off to a 21-4 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Trojans eventually coasted to an 87-55 win over the Islanders.

USC took a 36-20 lead into halftime and used an explosive third quarter that featured 35 points and five three-pointers to help start what the Trojans hope is a long march through the NCAA Tournament.

All the usual suspects contributed heavily for the Trojans. All-American true freshman JuJu Watkins finished with 23 points, five rebounds, four blocks and four assists. McKenzie Forbes had 23 points and four rebounds. Rayah Marshall finished with a double-double, including 10 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. And Kayla Padilla chipped in with 10 points and four assists.

The Islanders made their first attempt and another at the first-quarter buzzer. In between those shots, USC held Texas A&M Corpus-Christi to 0-for-20 shooting.

The teams played a fairly even second quarter as the Trojans struggled a bit with the Islanders’ defense and seemed to take their foot off the gas a bit. But USC came out fully focused for the third quarter, pouring in 35 points and finishing the quarter on a 20-5 run.

In the win, Watkins broke the single-season USC scoring record previously held by Cheryl Miller. Miller’s record was 814 points in one season. Watkins now has 833 points this season.

The Trojans move on in the NCAA Tournament and will now face No. 8 Kansas, which went into overtime to finish off a comeback win over No. 9 Michigan in Saturday’s earlier game.

The Regional 3 Portland has seen the higher seed advance in all eight opening-round games. No. 4 Virginia Tech will play No. 5 Baylor, with the winner facing off against the winner of USC and Kansas. No. 3 UConn will play No. 6 Syracuse. No. 2 Ohio State will take on No. 7 Duke.

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Garry Paskwietz (1966-2019)

Garry Paskwietz was a pioneer in bringing team-specific sports coverage to the internet. He founded WeAreSC in 1998 and was an Emmy winner for his work with Fox Sports West. Always generous with his time, knowledge, and compassion, he touched the lives of countless USC and high school football fans.

Garry Paskwietz