USC Basketball: Trojans Blown Out by Stanford Cardinal as Nightmare Season Continues
At 9-15, the Trojans' season isn't just over but has officially collapsed in the most disastrous way possible. A 99-68 loss to the Stanford Cardinal might just be the most embarrassing loss that the team has suffered in the entirety of the Andy Enfield era, especially acknowledging the amount of talent this team has and the expectations levied onto them (ranked No. 16 in the nation pre-season).
Despite returning the majority of their key pieces and bringing in the nation's 3rd-best recruiting class, USC now has a 3-10 conference record and has lost 12 of their last 15.
Today, the team was a disaster on both ends of the floor. They shot just 30% from three-point range (6/20) while allowing Stanford to set a record for the most three-pointers made in program history with 19, which they did on 50% efficiency from behind the arc.
They were also killed on the glass, losing the rebounding battle by 11 to a team that gave real minutes to one player above 6-foot-8. Things were under control for a bit when they trailed the Cardinal by just 1, 15-14. After that, they ceded a 25-0 run inexplicably, effectively ending the game.
There's simply no saving grace left, as even an incredibly improbable conference tournament run likely won't be enough for this group to sneak into March Madness, as more than likely, they'll finish below .500.
Every loss, there's one issue or another, whether it's the defense, rebounding, shooting, shot creation, or some combination of factors. The Enfield era is likely over as we know it – fittingly, after a blowout loss to Stanford, just like the Clay Helton era ended for USC Football.
Here are some of USC's top plays on the day:
There are usually more highlight plays, but tonight was just a complete disaster. They'll look to bounce back at home against the Utah Utes on the 15th.
