WKU Basketball: Johnson Nets 23 in Toppers’ 79–75 Win at Southern Cal
The year refuses to die for WKU basketball, and that’s fine by me, as the Tops held off the USC Trojans in the final seconds of the contest…
The year refuses to die for WKU basketball, and that’s fine by me, as the Tops held off the USC Trojans in the final seconds of the contest to close out a 79–75 victory to advance to the NIT Elite 8.
In one of the stranger moves of the evening, with time winding down following an air-ball three attempt, USC opted not to foul the Tops, as WKU dribbled the clock out until Dwight Coleby threw one down with two hands to put the game at it’s final four-point score.
The final frame didn’t begin so promising for the Toppers, though. USC closed the third and opened the fourth quarter on a 9–0 run, and opened the final quarter on a 7–2 run to take a 65–61 lead over the Tops. But, the Tops were able to calm the waters and chip into the lead, using a 9–0 run later in the quarter to eventually tie the game at 70–70, and take a lead before SC came back to tie it.
The weak spots all night for the Tops was defense — the Trojans had basically anything they wanted in the paint (despite WKU, at one time, holding an eight-point advantage in that category) and when USC had WKU thinking they were going through the paint, they kicked out for a wide open three (the Trojans were 9-for-24 from deep).
I don’t know if it’s because I’m tired from the game being so late or what, but there isn’t anything that especially stands out about the Tops tonight. Yeah, they were good and they certainly didn’t luck into the win, but they weren’t anywhere near dominant, and especially in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, they looked a little sluggish and gunshy on offense. But, as Bill Walton would probably say, life finds a way, and when it does, you make lemmonade.
Or something.
Justin Johnson finished the game leading all scorers with 23 points and added seven rebounds to his night. Coleby (13), Lamonte Bearden (a quiet 11) and Josh Anderson (10) also had double-figures for the Tops, who shot 53.6% from the floor.
The win means the Tops survive and advance, and it solidifies WKU’s first multi-win NIT run since 1948.
Your box scores for tonight.
WKU
USC
This game was a toss up all night long. Don’t believe me?
And finally, tonight’s win probabilty breakdown
For WKU, it’s off to Stillwater to take on Oklahoma State, who have NIT wins against Florida Gulf Coast and Stanford. Tip off Wednesday is set for 7 p.m. CT on ESPN2.