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Drew Peterson Leads No. 21 USC Men's Basketball In 67-64 Signature Win Over Rival No. 12 UCLA

by usctrojans.com
Feb 12, 2022

LOS ANGELES — Drew Peterson had a season-high 27 points on 9-of-13 shooting with 12 rebounds, four assists and five blocks as No. 21 USC men's basketball upset rival No. 12 UCLA, 67-74, in front of a sold-out crowd of 10,258 fans at Galen Center on Saturday night.

Peterson was 4-of-5 from the 3-point line and willed a 18-6 run late in the second half that helped the Trojans (21-4, 10-4 Pac-12) sealed the win.

"My teammates keep telling me to shoot," Peterson said. "They trust me to shoot. I felt really confident. I got my confidence back and some swagger."

Captain Chevez Goodwin had 10 points and nine rebounds. Freshman Reese Dixon-Waters also had 10 points and was 2-of-3 from the 3-point line.

The Trojans were without captain and leading scorer and rebounder Isaiah Mobley, who missed his second-straight game due to a fractured nose.

"That was a terrific game," said USC coach Andy Enfield. "UCLA is so hard to guard. Our defense was outstanding. We played with heart and toughness without our best player."

"It was a great atmosphere with our student section. It was a tremendous crowd, they gave us energy to pull it out. This was as good an atmosphere for a home game as I can remember."

The win extended the Trojans' win streak over the Bruins to five games. USC has won five straight against the Bruins for the first time since winning 42 consecutive games against UCLA from 1932-43. USC has not lost to UCLA (17-5, 9-4 Pac-12) since Feb. 28, 2019. The win also gave the Trojans a much-needed signature win for their NCAA Tournament resume.

It was the first time the Trojans and Bruins faced off against each other both as ranked teams since Feb. 7, 2007. The two teams will meet again in the final week of the regular season on March 5 at Pauley Pavilion.

USC went 5-of-10 from the 3-point line in a tight first half to help give the Trojans a 33-10 edge at halftime. An off-balanced triple from Harrison Hornery kicked off USC's shooting barrage, followed by a 3-pointer from Dixon-Waters and three treys from Peterson.

The Bruins stormed back into the game immediately out of the second half, regaining the lead with a 15-4 run. Max Agbonkpolo's layup and jumper help spark the Peterson-led 18-5 run that ignited the Galen Center.

Peterson and Goodwin sunk four critical free throws that gave USC its largest lead at 65-57 lead with 41 seconds remaining, but the Trojans needed to rely on their defense to close out the game.

Tyger Campbell made a layup and sank two free throws following a technical foul shot. USC committed a turnover on the ensuing inbound, but Dixon-Waters stole the ball back and assisted Agbonkpolo on a layup with five seconds left.

USC fouled Johnny Juzang on UCLA's next turn on offense. After Juzang converted both free throws with two seconds left, Campbell intercepted USC's inbound but rimmed out on his last-second heave.

The USC student section — the largest in Galen Center history — rushed the court to celebrate with the Trojans following the win.

"I've never played in a game like that, with that kind of atmosphere and then after with everyone on the court," Dixon-Waters said.

Campbell also finished with a game-high 27 points for the Bruins, which shot a season-worst 30.2% from the field.

The Trojans shot just 43.6% from the field but were 44.4% from the perimeter (fourth-best of the season) and blocked 10 shots.

USC resumes its home stretch next week with games against Washington on Thursday and Washington State on Feb. 20.

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