LAHAINA, MAUI, HAWAII — Coming off an exciting 3 OT game winner last time out, the USC Trojans traveled to the island of Hawaii to play in the Southwest Maui Invitational tournament for the next three days, with their first game coming against the Boise State Broncos in the quarterfinals game Monday evening. Just like how it was against Troy, the Trojans were in a tight back-and-forth battle til the last sequence of the game, but they came out on top with a 70-67 final score led by Rodney Rice’s team-high 27 points.
USC began this contest shooting consistently from the floor against the Broncos, as Rice led the charge offensively with 14 first-half points on 6-12 shooting. Rice also shot 50% from beyond the arc, registering a 2-4 on shooting attempts.
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At one point, the Trojans maintained their biggest lead of the half, a 9-point lead, and seemed to be steamrolling with the three-ball, but the Broncos quickly took advantage of the Trojans’ unwillingness to defend the paint, as Boise State would score 24 of their 32 first-half points in the paint. USC would find itself without making a basket for over 2 minutes as the Broncos forced themselves into the paint, resulting in a 10-0 run and ending the first half, making their last 5-7 field goals.
The second half was just as tight as the first, but Rice would continue right where he left off. In the second half, Rice would score an additional 13 points on 5-9 shooting and end the game with a team-leading 27-point performance. Rice’s jumper, which later turned into a shot for a three-point play with 14 seconds left in the second half, would break the 65-65 tie, and all of a sudden, the Trojans had a 68-65 lead.
Boise State would bring it within two once more now with four seconds left on the clock, but it was Jordan Marash who would return as the hero, as he would nail the Trojans’ last two points via a trip to the free-throw line.
With this quarterfinal win, the Trojans improve to 5-0 on the season and now have a date with Seton Hall tomorrow.
