USC learns Rodney Rice is out for season before beating Texas San Antonio

With a near-perfect non-conference roster, no matter what happened to USC, be it injuries or other unforeseen circumstances, the Trojans never lacked life on the court. It was this infinite energy that helped them gain strength. up to 10-1 start off.

But that energy was noticeably absent for a while Wednesday against Texas San Antonio, a team that has lost four of its last five. Perhaps it was the ambiance of the nearly empty and eerily quiet Galen Center. Perhaps it was the “devastating” news received earlier in the day. like USC announced that point guard Rodney Rice will undergo shoulder surgery and miss the rest of the season.

Whatever the case, USC was eventually able to shake it off on Wednesday night, turning a late first-half deficit into a convincing one. victory with a score of 97-70 over San Antonio in the second.

That message, brief as it is, raises questions about how the shorthanded roster will be able to handle the brutal Big Ten slate that awaits USC in two weeks. The Trojans begin this stretch with a particularly wild game that includes three top-10 teams: No. 2 Michigan, No. 9 Michigan State and No. 6 Purdue. Whether they can survive this period without three players, the coaches expected to contribute the most have a lot to say about where the Trojans are headed this season.

“Without them, we're going to have to work hard and play hard to win games,” coach Eric Musselman said. “We have a lot to clean up, and we have to out-match our opponents in terms of playing hard. We don't have enough people. We don't have Alija Arenas. We don't have Rodney Rice. And we don't have Amarion Dickerson. That's a lot.”

That struggle was at the center of Musselman's message to his team at halftime Wednesday after USC looked unusually lifeless. During the first 15 minutes of the game, the Trojans were pushed out and outplayed on the glass as the Roadrunners drew fouls, forced turnovers and grabbed seven offensive rebounds to start the game.

With 3:38 left in the first half, they still trailed 4-6 to the Roadrunners, who had lost their last two games to Alabama by 42 and Colorado by 24.

But when the Trojans finally turned it on, in the final minutes of the first half, there was no stopping the onslaught. Ryan Cornish hit the jumper. Ezra Ausar intercepted the ball into the hoop. Chad Baker-Mazara scored after allowing three goals. USC finished the first half on a 13-0 run and took control from there.

He's done it the same way he's done in nearly every game since Rice lost, leaning on Baker-Mazara and Ausar, who are averaging 38 points per game.

After the break, both felt a rush of adrenaline. Mazara scored 17 points in the second half, giving him 20 points for the game, while Ausar, the nation's leader in free throws, continued to bully defenders in the paint.

Ausar finished the game with a game-high 22 points and added 10 rebounds, giving him his first double-double of the season.

“My energy is contagious, and humbly, once I leave, everyone leaves,” Ausar said. “If my energy is not right, then my team’s energy is not right.”

He will be especially critical next month when the Trojans face a series of beatings in Big Ten frontcourts.

“Ezra will continue to get better,” Musselman said. “His basketball future is so bright. He hasn't even predicted who he'll be yet… We're going to rely on Ezra to keep this group together and be a leader, and he's done that.”

Arenas will return to training in the coming days and will hopefully be ready by mid-January. Until then, others will have to make their mark if USC hopes to survive this shorthanded period.

In the match against San Antonio, Cornish answered the call. The Dartmouth transfer had only played more than 15 minutes in a game once this season before Wednesday. But in his first start as point guard, Cornish scored 18 points, including four 3-pointers.

“He was near the bottom of the lineup, and he deserved what he got,” Musselman said. “We need people to step up and we need to develop our squad as best we can and Ryan is a great example of someone stepping up.”