Trojans keep fast start going
They are 3-0 for first time since 2000 after McLaughlin, Stewart lead win over Lobos.
Jordan McLaughlin scored 19 points, fellow guard Elijah Stewart had 18 and USC defeated New Mexico, 90-82, Saturday night at the Galen Center for its first 3-0 start since 200001.
Bennie Boatwright scored 15 points and Julian Jacobs had 14 for the Trojans, who won their first two games by double digits.
Samford transfer Tim Williams led the Lobos (3-1) with 25 points and 15 rebounds. Butler transfer Elijah Brown scored 18 points and Obij Aget, their 7-foot-1 center from South Sudan, had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
New Mexico trailed by 20 points before rallying with a 30-15 run to close to within 8176 with under two minutes remaining. The Lobos hit five three-pointers, including three by Cullen Neal, and Williams scored 11 points during the surge.
The Trojans made 12 free throws down the stretch while the Lobos got consecutive three-pointers from Brown and Anthony Mathis that left them trailing, 87-82. Katin Reinhardt came up with a big block of Brown’s three-point attempt and the Lobos were called for traveling to end the threat.
The Trojans stretched a 17-point halftime lead to 5433 early in the second half with six straight points. McLaughlin and Reinhardt hit back-to-back three-pointers that made it 66-46.
Brown made three consecutive three-pointers midway through the half, but the Lobos still trailed 66-49. They shot 39% from the field for the game.
USC made a season-high 12 three-pointers, with Stewart and Boatwright hitting four each.
The score was tied, 12-12, in the opening minutes before the Trojans launched a 20-8 run that produced their first double-digit lead, 32-20. Five players scored during the run, including Stewart with two three-pointers and McLaughlin with five points.