The UCI Men’s Basketball team (2-1) pulled off a narrow upset win over the 16th-ranked USC Trojans (2-1), 70-60, at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, Calif. on Tuesday, Nov. 14.
UCI redshirt senior guard Justin Hohn had a historic night, scoring a career and season-high 25 points on an extremely efficient 10 of 16 from the field and three for six from beyond the arc. Not far behind, junior center Bent Leuchten chipped in with 19 points, followed by redshirt junior forward Devin Tillis and fifth-year guard Pierre Crockrell II with eight points a piece.
On the other hand, USC’s squad lacked three crucial players — freshman guard Bronny James, junior guard Kobe Johnson and fifth-year guard Boogie Ellis — which forced freshman guard Isaiah Collier to carry a lot of the workload on an otherwise-talented USC roster.
Early into the match, the ‘Eaters’ defensive-scheme made a point of nullifying Collier’s star power. Collier’s drives to the basket were met with consistent double-teams in the paint, which forced missed passes and layups. Despite their efforts, Collier still managed to score USC’s first six points, a testament to his scoring ability.
If the ‘Eaters came out cold, then the Trojans could have run away with the game, especially considering the unforeseen production coming from redshirt senior forward Joshua Morgan, who was only two points shy from a double-double.
One aspect that the Trojans severely lacked was ball facilitation. Without Ellis, 6 ‘5 off-guard Collier was forced to distribute the ball and committed three of seven turnovers for the Trojans. Neither team led by more than three points during the first half.
Ultimately, by the end of the half, the ‘Eaters managed to stay ahead, 29-26. Hohn led both teams with 13 points on a spectacular six for nine from the field. The rest of the points were distributed amongst Leuchten, Crockrell II and newly recruited graduate student guard Dylan Thoerner.
The ‘Eaters kept USC’s offense stagnant at a suboptimal shooting percentage of 25 percent from the field (8-32) and 18 percent from the three point (2-11). The Trojans were most productive at the foul line, which netted eight out of nine possible points. Three of the five Trojan starters were without made field goals and collectively were zero and ten from the field.
Late into the second half, the ‘Eaters took a commanding 57-47 point lead thanks to a Hohn three-pointer.
However, the Trojans would not go away lightly. From beyond the arc, junior forward Harrison Hornery hit a massive three-pointer while simultaneously being fouled by UCI redshirt senior guard Ofure Ujadughele for a four-point swing.
With two minutes left, Hornery drained two free throws to cut down the ‘Eaters lead to one point, 61-60.
But it was all in vain. In the final minute, Tillis stepped up massively and scored five straight points for the ‘Eaters, including a game-sealing corner three-point dagger. The ‘Eaters pulled away in the final minute and won, 70-60, achieving another ranked win, their second victory over a ranked Pac-12 team in two years.
Jason Garcia Escobar is a Sports Staff Writer. He can be reached at jasonag3@uci.edu.
