Colorado edges out USC in semifinals, set to face Oregon State next

LAS VEGAS –– Shots were flying through the net as soon as the second semifinal game of the Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Tournament tipped off. The 3rd seed Buffaloes went 3-4 for 3-point shots as Evan and Isaiah Mobley sank three jumpers for the 2nd seed Trojans to start the game.

Just six minutes into the game, Colorado star guard McKinley Wright IV was dropped by a vicious elbow to the head from USC’s Chevez Goodwin and had to be escorted to the locker room. 

Wright’s absence lit a fire under the Buffs as they played extremely tight defense and aggressive offense, extending their lead to 14 points halfway through the first. After returning from the locker room, Wright entered back into the game with 7:08 left on the clock and Colorado up by 13 points. 

Throughout the entire first half, only four players were able to put up points for the Trojans; the Mobley brothers collecting 22 points between the two of them alone.

Wright, after his brief absence, was able to rack up 13 points and led Colorado in scoring going into halftime.

“Luckily I have a big head or else I would have been out for probably longer. But it hurt, man, I got a little knot back here, but it's a part of basketball,” Wright said about getting knocked down early in the game.

The Buffaloes led the Trojans, 39-30, at the end of the first 20 minutes.

USC’s scoring struggles persisted into the second half as Colorado continued to knock jumpers and maintain their lead.

With 11 minutes left in the game, the Trojans started to turn the tables by connecting on shots from all over the floor. As Colorado began missing, USC was able to close the gap to just three points with nine and a half minutes of play still remaining. 

“The big thing for our team is we don't panic and we don't get our heads down,” Colorado Head Coach Tad Boyle said of his team’s efforts tonight. “This team just has a resiliency and a fight and a belief in themselves and a toughness that is fun to be around.”

With 31.9 seconds remaining in the game, USC tied the game at 70 with an and-one play from senior guard Tahj Eaddy. A missed buzzer-beater by Wright was stuffed in by D’Shawn Schwartz leaving USC with just 3.3 seconds to make up a two point deficit.

Even the Trojans’ 40 second-half points were not enough to outscore the Buffaloes’ unstoppable offense that had a jaw-dropping 50 percent shooting from 3-point range.

Colorado will face the Oregon State Beavers in the championship game tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m. The Beavers have made their way through the No. 4 and No. 1 seeded teams and are looking to continue their trend of upset victories in the tournament.