USC tops the "basketball school of LA" for fifth straight time, takes leap in AP poll

USC basketball has now beat UCLA five straight times on the hardwood.

It's obviously not a good look for the so-called "basketball school of LA." As a result of the game, SC moved up four spots to No. 17 in the AP Top 25 poll on Monday. They had an undefeated week, winning against Pacific earlier in the week as well.

Drew Peterson went off on the Bruins, as the guard led the Trojans with 27 points in his team-high 38 minutes. Peterson truly went from zero to hero last week. He went from shooting 20.6% (20% from three) in the three games prior to this past week, to 66.7% in last week's two games (also 66.7% from deep).

On Saturday against the so-called "basketball school," he went nine of 13 (69.2%) from the field and four of five from downtown. He was sensational. Having 12 rebounds and five blocks as a GUARD, his impact was as tremendous as it possibly could have been.

Peterson put USC Basketball on his back to beat UCLA without Isaiah Mobley playing.

Mobley was out, which makes this win for USC basketball that much more impressive. Peterson raised his game to new heights when somebody had to step up, making up for some struggles that other players experienced in the game. He picked his teammates up.

Boogie Ellis was outstanding on defense, but when he went 0 for 7 offensively, it didn't matter. Peterson found a way to pick his guys up. Chevez Goodwin only made three of nine shots (although I'll add that he did collect nine boards and hit all four free throws), but Peterson's excellence put Goodwin and his teammates on top.

Peterson also led the team in assists (four), and had a steal. It was one of the most anticipated USC basketball games in a long time, and the game lived up to the hype. Coming down to the wire, SC still pulled it off--67 to 64.

We now sit at 21-4 on the year, while the Bruins are at 17-5. There's an incredible opportunity coming up for SC to place in the top 15 next week, as they have the uninspiring Washington schools this week coming up at home.