No. 10 USC Men's Basketball Shuts Down Georgia Tech, 67-53, For 12th Straight Win
Boogie Ellis scored 16 points as No. 10 USC men's basketball stayed perfect in its start to the 2021-22 season with a 67-53 win against Georgia Tech at the Colangelo Classic in Phoenix on Saturday.
Ellis scored in double figures for the first time in five games despite averaging 17.0 points in the Trojans' opening five contests. The 6-foot-3 guard also grabbed seven rebounds and was presented the game's Most Valuable Player award by tournament namesake Jerry Colangelo.
Coast-to-coast bucket from @BoogieEllis forces the Yellow Jackets to call a timeout as we've got our largest lead of the game!
📺: @Pac12Network
📱: https://t.co/RwgACfElMV pic.twitter.com/AlfpBP3HUk— USC Men's Basketball (@USC_Hoops) December 18, 2021
Drew Peterson had 14 points, eight rebounds and was 4-of-9 from the 3-point line.
4️⃣th 3-pointer of the day for @Drewpeterson23!
That's the most of his USC career.
📺: @Pac12Network
📱: https://t.co/RwgACfElMV pic.twitter.com/RbmS7QzrGn— USC Men's Basketball (@USC_Hoops) December 18, 2021
The Trojans also had strong contributions from Chevez Goodwin (13 points and eight rebounds), and Ethan Anderson and Isaiah Mobley (11 points each).
USC (12-0, 2-0 Pac-12) remains as one of seven undefeated teams left in men's college basketball and became the first to reach 12 wins.
The Trojans pulled away at multiple points of the game thanks to 3-point shooting, making 9 of 19 treys for USC's best clip of the season at 47.1%.
The Trojans had a cold start to the game and found themselves in an early 14-8 deficit but the Trojans' tough defense prevented further damage, holding the Yellow Jackets to a season-low 31.8% shooting all game. USC finally went on a 25-4 run later in the first half led by a 3-point barrage from Peterson, Anderson and Mobley. The burst gave USC a nine-point lead at halftime.
Captain @Nolomit_e is 3-for-3 from 3!
📺: @Pac12Network
📱: https://t.co/RwgACfElMV pic.twitter.com/eBRN5QjvTK— USC Men's Basketball (@USC_Hoops) December 18, 2021
Georgia Tech cut the lead within seven points with 6:13 remaining, but the Trojans closed out the game with 20-4 run.
Michael Devoe scored a game-high 25 points for the Yellow Jackets.
USC also saw two former Trojans in Jordan Usher and Kyle Sturdivant. Usher was held to 11 points on 5-of-14 shooting despite scoring six quick points in the game's opening minutes. Sturdivant was held to five points on 2-of-6 shooting.
The Trojans play another neutral-site event at the Compete 4 Cause Classic in Oklahoma City on Tuesday against Oklahoma State before resuming Pac-12 play on Dec. 30 at home against Arizona State.