2 USC Basketball guards pick up disappointing offense in PAC-12 Opener

USC Basketball's offense really wasn't what it was expected to be against Cal in their season opener on Wednesday. They were playing an 0-8 Cal team who was allowing 65.9 points per game. They barely broke that at 66 points.

66 was, however, enough for a 15-point win over the Golden Bears. The two most responsible for the offense that USC did have, however, were guards Drew Peterson and Reese Dixon-Waters. Peterson had 14 points, and a game-high five assists. He hit five of eight shots, and two of his four three-point attempts. He hit both his free throws.

Dixon-Waters was impressive too, scoring a team-high 17 points. He was six of 10, and hit half of his four three-point shots. He was a perfect three for three from the charity stripe. He was a force off the bench for the Trojans, making up for Boogie Ellis' rough shooting night (two for eight from the field and one of four from deep). Ellis did, however, hit his one free throw.

The Trojans as a whole were great form the free throw line. That's one thing that the entire team excelled at against Cal. They were 15 of 16 from the line. The Bears, on the other hand, were just 12 of 17. Joshua Morgan was even six for six. He was great offensively too, nailing four of six shots for 14 points.

Drew Peterson and Reese Dixon-Waters were the only ones to hit multiple three-point shots for USC Basketball.

Other than Drew Peterson and Reese Dixon-Waters, only one USC Basketball player made a three. It was just Ellis, who had his one three-point conversion. SC shot just 31.3% from downtown on the night--highlighting how important the shooting that they got from Peterson and Dixon-Waters truly was.

It was especially needed on a night where SC turned the ball over too much. They coughed the basketball up 12 times to Cal's eight. This was a good get-right game for the Trojans, who were on a two-game skid after their four-game winning streak that put them at 4-1. The now 5-3 Trojans will play Oregon State next in their PAC-12 home opener on Sunday.