Porous rebounding by the Trojans and clutch shooting from the Bears ruin Isaiah Collier’s comeback effort in an 83-77 overtime loss to Cal. The Trojans are 0-3 in close games decided by 6 points or less and 0-2 in overtime games this year.
Collier was back for the first time in six games after injuring his hand against Washington State on January 10. In that absence, the Trojans missed his ability to drive the ball, challenge defenses inside and get to the free throw line.
Scoreless at the half, Isaiah Collier scored 17 points in the second half to erase a 16-point lead by the Cal Bears to take the game to overtime.
In front of an announced sold-out crowd at Haas Pavilion, Collier put the offense on his back down the stretch, drawing fouls almost every time he drove the lane. After missing his first two free throw attempts in the first half, he was 12-14 from the line after halftime. Unfortunately, the rest of the team shot just three of eight from the charity stripe on the night.
After the Arizona State game that saw the Trojans +20 on the glass , the Trojans thought they had solved the rebounding woes that plagued them during their six-game losing streak in January, but the Bears outrebounded the Trojans 54-27. USC’s defense held the Bears to just 25 points in the second half, but poor rebounding — a Cal 19-5 offensive rebounding advantage — gave them extra possessions. Fardaws Aimaq dominated inside with 20 rebounds and USC as a team had only 27 on the game.
Cal was led by Jaylon Tyson’s double-double. He scored 27 points, four of five from beyond the arc, and added 11 rebounds. Tyson, Jalen Cone, and Jale Celestine shot 59% on 11 of 18 from the three point line. The Bears hit four contested treys with the shot clock winding down in the second half and overtime to neutralize the Trojans smothering defense in the paint — the last one in the corner from Cone was the dagger.
DJ Rodman has scored 31 points over the last two games. His 17 points off the bench were crucial as Boogie Ellis continues to struggle after returning from a hamstring injury. Rodman was three of four on three-point attempts during the game, but he saw his last triple go halfway down and bounce out with the Trojans trailing by four late in overtime to seal the game for the Bears.
On Saturday, at 7 p.m. on ESPN2, USC will face off against the Stanford Cardinal at Maples Arena in an attempt to earn a split of the Bay Area road trip.
