USC Trojans News: USC Basketball stays hot, De'Anthony Melton won't stop, more
By Evan Desai
USC Basketball beat Long Beach State by a score of 88-78 on Wednesday night to advance to 8-3 on the season. They stay hot--winning four in a row. It's exactly what they need as they get ready to host No. 19 Auburn on Sunday.
This USC team has been pretty inconsistent on really both sides of the ball this year, but they've beaten all of the teams they were supposed to beat this year outside of that crushing opening night loss to Florida Gulf Coast. That loss will continue to haunt their NCAA Tournament aspirations (as it should), but things could start to change with a win over a Top 20 Auburn team this weekend.
More USC Basketball News
Former USC Basketball alum and NBA Draft pick in De'Anthony Melton is having himself a career season for the Philadelphia 76ers. Melton is up to 11.9 points per game on the year, 3.3 assists per game, and 2.2 steals per game (as of Thursday). Those are all career-highs, which is great to see from Melton, who is playing good basketball on both ends of the court.
Melton is also shooting 42.6% from the field, which is solid as a point guard, and shooting 39.4% from deep. That three-point percentage is excellent for any position, and he even is chipping in 4.4 rebounds per game. Melton is a starter for the 6ers, who have a top five record in the Eastern Conference (as of Thursday).
NCAA News
There will be Pac-12 Football on today, as USC Football conference opponents Oregon State and Washington State have their bowl games. Oregon State plays Florida in the Las Vegas Bowl, and Washington State plays Fresno State in the LA Bowl. The No. 14 Oregon State Beavers will be favored in their game, although the 7-5 Washington State Cougars will likely not be favored in theirs.
USC played all three of the Beavs, Cougs, and Fresno State Bulldogs in the first half of this season. They beat all three, despite the Oregon State game being on the road in Corvallis. Even if Oregon State wins, it will be unlikely for them to jump USC in the final rankings--regardless of if USC wins the Cotton Bowl or not.