No. 17 USC Outworks No. 20 Nebraska on the Glass to Secure Ranked Road Victory
Today served up a top 25 matchup in the Big 10 as the 17th ranked USC Trojans visited the 20th ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Huskers entered the day ranked No. 11 in the NET, with USC sitting at 23rd. The Trojans and Huskers fought a hard battle that ended in a 74-66 USC win.
Let’s get into the details of how this one was made.
Jazzy Davidson has been the freshman leader for USC, coming into today she averaged 16.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game. She and Nebraska’s Britt Prince were the matchup that I had looked to watch today.
The first few minutes went back and forth with missed shots and free throws as both teams tried to settle in offensively. At the first media timeout, Nebraska held an 8-7 lead with 4:45 left in the first quarter.
USC’s Kara Dunn had scored all seven points for the Trojans at that point. Nebraska had already moved into the bonus by drawing fouls and crashing the boards. Six of their first eight points came from the free throw line.
Logan Nissley came out of the timeout with a three pointer, followed by a score from Britt Prince to give the Huskers a 13-7 lead.
Nebraska kept Jazzy Davidson quiet early, which was huge. Davidson started 0-for-5 from the field, and USC opened 3-for-12 before Kennedy Smith finally got on the board.
After the first quarter, Nebraska led 20-12. The separation came from the free throw line. Nebraska went 8-for-8 in the opening frame while USC went 1-for-3.
Davidson, who was scoreless in the first quarter, finally got on the board to open the second quarter. USC found its rhythm with tougher defense and better shot execution, tying the game at 22 heading into the media timeout with 7:13 left in the half.
Kara Dunn was the engine for USC with 11 points, shooting 5-for-8 through the first 13 minutes. Callin Hake made USC work on defense early on by consistently attacking the paint and drawing fouls, something Nebraska did pretty well throughout the first half.
USC’s length caused problems for Nebraska at times, and became much more of a deal later. Davidson did not score much early, but she more than made up for it on the glass, defensively, and as a facilitator. By halftime she had eight points, five rebounds, four blocks, three assists, and a steal.
For Nebraska, Britt Prince had nine points at the half. Nissley and Hake added six each. Nebraska was perfect at the line, going 13-for-13 before the break. Halftime seemed to have been a great adjustment period for Jazzy Davidson and the Trojans.
Davidson opened the second half with her 10th point to tie the game, again capitalizing on a second chance opportunity. She looked poised for a big half, and Nebraska continued to struggle with defensive rebounds.
Then, almost instantly, USC opened up a 47-38 lead as Londynn Jones knocked down three straight three pointers. She provided an immediate spark when the Trojans needed it.
Kara Dunn, who set the tone early, ran into foul trouble and picked up her fourth midway through the third quarter. That sent her to the bench for a while, but USC had enough production to keep rolling.
Davidson kept going, drilling a three out of the media timeout to get to 15 points. Jones followed with a drive and layup to make it 56-44 USC with 3:58 remaining in the third.
A scary moment followed when Davidson went down and had to be helped to the bench, though she was able to walk under her own power and later returned. Turns out it was cramps and nothing serious. Kennedy Smith added five quick points late in the quarter, and Davidson scored in transition to help USC take a 65-52 lead into the fourth.
Nebraska responded with urgency. Behind the defensive and offensive presence of Eliza Maupin, the Huskers went on a 7-0 run and cut the lead to 67-61 with 5:25 left. Smith continued to assert herself for USC, while Maupin brought the spark Nebraska had been missing for much of the second half.
Prince cut the lead to four with 2:42 left after scoring off an offensive rebound to make it 69-65. Nebraska turned up the defensive pressure and did well to keep USC in check late. Davidson was in and out while dealing with a leg issue.
USC, however, held firm and finished it off 74-66, picking up their third ranked win of the season and 2-0 in Big Ten play. The Trojans controlled the game in the paint, on defense, and on the glass. A perfect recipe for a win any day, especially in a ranked road environment.
Afterwards, Nebraska’s coach Amy Williams addressed the media, and you can see her disappointment of the way things went today, also noting that they could have been sharper.
“I’m just disappointed to lose ever, but particularly at home in front of this fantastic crowd. I’m just so proud of Husker Nation and the way they came out for us today on a Monday afternoon. And, you know, we were not as sharp as we needed to be to be able to win games against ranked opponents in the Big Ten Conference. Too many points off our turnovers, too many second chance points off rebounds for Southern Cal today for us to be able to come out victorious.”
USC finished with 44 points in the paint, accounting for 59 percent of its scoring. The Trojans also had 19 second chance points, fueled by 16 offensive rebounds that made a huge difference in this game. USC finished with four players in double digits, Jazzy Davidson and Kennedy Smith both with 17, Kara Dunn with 14, and Londynn Jones with 13.
As for the Huskers, they take their first loss of the season and could never really get that offensive rhythm they needed to take over this game. USC’s size and pressure were able to keep this game where they wanted it throughout the second half, and was able to withstand Nebraska’s late push.
“Yeah, well, they were physical the whole game. They were physical, they were just coming at us in a lot of different directions, and they had great rebounding up and down their roster,” said Williams.
“They were relentless in their pursuit, but it wasn’t just their forwards. It was guards too, just up and down their roster. They were aggressive and physical, crashing the glass.”
Britt Prince did finish with 18 points on six of nine shooting front the field. Logan Nissley had 10, and Eliza Maupin added 10 as well, coming on late with much needed energy and presence in the fourth quarter. Nebraska is on the road for a trip to No. 14 Iowa on January 1.
This league is a tough one, and Coach Amy Williams knows that. They have to flush today to some degree and make some adjustments before heading to face the Hawkeyes.
“I feel like this is a team I love coaching. I love coaching this team, and that’s even on a hard day like today, our first loss of the season. But I love it because I can depend on the fact that they’re gonna give me everything they’ve got. They fight hard. We weren’t disciplined enough today to be able to win this game, but I think this is a team that will respond well.”
Stay tuned to see how the Huskers bounce back, as they were held under 80 points for the first time this season. As for the Trojans, they will have a few days off until they meet crosstown rival UCLA Bruins on Saturday.
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Featured Image Credit: USC Athletics
