Boogie Ellis game winner lifts No. 17 USC to win over Washington State

LOS ANGELES — After a night of maddening misses and scoring droughts, No. 17 USC still had a chance. With 20.3 seconds left against Washington State and the score tied, head coach Andy Enfield called timeout to draw up a play.

The plan was for Isaiah Mobley to set a pick for Boogie Ellis and react to how the Cougars defended. After 12 seconds ticked away, Mobley set the screen and Ellis dribbled to his right. The Cougars didn’t switch, while Mobley’s man played between him and the ball to prevent a pass.

Left to his own devices, Ellis took a step back, crossed the ball over to his left and dribbled that direction until he reached the free-throw line and faded away with a help defender coming in hot to his side.

The ball hit the back of the rim before going in with 0.2 seconds remaining. And what began as Senior Day ended as Boogie Night at the Galen Center, with USC (23-4, 12-4 in Pac-12) escaping with a 62-60 win.

“I work hard for those moments,” Ellis said. “It was my first big moment wearing a Trojan uniform so it was one of the best moments for me.”

Ellis finished with a team-high 21 points, making both his 3-pointers and seven of eight free throws. Drew Peterson added 17 while Tyrell Roberts led the Cougars with 16.

Just looking at the box score and this one had all the hallmarks of an upset. Washington State (14-12, 7-8) attempted 18 more shots than USC thanks to a 41-34 edge in rebounding. And the Cougars hit 15 of 31 attempts from 3-point range while forcing USC into 14 turnovers.

But the Trojans limited Washington State to just five made two-point baskets. And even with 16 offensive rebounds from the Cougars, USC limited the damage to five second-chance points.

“This is a unique box score,” Enfield said.

Much of the first half was borderline unwatchable, which was in stark contrast to the first five minutes in which USC moved the ball seamlessly and got out to a 10-point lead.

But the Trojans ended the first half by missing 10 of 14 shots, some floaters clanking badly off the glass. The free-flowing offense that led to a season-high in assists on Thursday dried up, with USC failing to get an assist in the final 15 minutes of the half.

“I think it just took us a while to get our flow,” guard Max Agbonkpolo said.

The Trojans were able to stay close thanks to their defense, holding the Cougars to a 1-for-12 stretch in the middle of the period. But two Roberts 3-pointers put the Trojans down four entering the locker room.

And it wasn’t much different for USC after the break. A player would dribble and try to create a shot and when it wasn’t there, pass off to someone else for their turn.

So even with USC holding Washington State to 1-for-10 shooting to start the second half, the Trojans did nothing to build more than a two-point lead.

All seemed lost for the next 7:14 of the game, in which USC failed to score a field goal. In that span, Washington State was able to rip off an 11-1 run, making three 3-pointers. The last of those triples was a high-bouncing shot from Michael Flowers that rattled in to make it an eight-point Cougar lead.

But the Trojans got back into the game with their defense, switching to a zone for the final six minutes, a span in which Washington State went 2-for-8 with three turnovers. Peterson tied the game with a fadeaway jumper, then Agbonkpolo tied it again with a corner 3.

Washington State missed its last three shots, setting up Ellis’ signature moment since transferring from Memphis prior to the season.

“Our favorite player is Kobe, so we live for those moments,” said Ellis, who was mobbed by his teammates as the crowd of 4,268 released its emotions after 40 minutes of anxiety. “Everybody works hard to be in that environment and make shots like that.”