Jackson Shelstad scored 21 of his 24 points in the second half and Keeshawn Barthelemy provided pivotal plays down the stretch as No. 12 Oregon rallied to top Southern California 68-60 in Los Angeles on Wednesday in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
The Ducks (9-0, 1-0 Big Ten) went on a 14-2 run late in the second half to flip a game they trailed most of the way. Shelstad kicked off Oregon’s key stretch, which lasted 3:01 and extended past the final media timeout, with the first six points.
He helped cut a seven-point deficit to three before TJ Bamba swiped the last of his four steals, then found Barthelemy in transition for a game-tying 3-pointer with 4:37 remaining.
On the ensuing USC possession, Barthelemy stole the ball from Kevin Patton Jr., leading to a go-ahead 3-pointer from Shelstad. After another Trojans turnover, Barthelemy dished the last of his five assists to Brandon Angel for a bucket inside to cap the run.
Barthelemy delivered a strong all-around performance with 18 points, going 4-for-5 from 3-point range, and three steals. His second-half effort, along with Shelstad’s eruption after halftime, powered Oregon through a deficit of as many as 11 points and extended the program’s best start since 2013-14.
USC (5-4, 0-1) took its third consecutive loss, a byproduct of the Trojans’ poor shooting.
USC went 19-for-55 (34.5 percent) from the floor and just 2-for-13 (15.4 percent) from 3-point range. Oregon shot 8-for-23 (34.8 percent) from deep and 21-for-55 (38.2 percent) overall.
Trojans forward Josh Cohen was limited to two points on 1-of-3 shooting in just 14 minutes. He took a knee to the leg late in the first half and logged just three minutes after halftime.
Desmond Claude led USC with 22 points. Chibuzo Agbo scored 18 points, much of it coming on 10-of-10 shooting at the free-throw line. He accounted for both of the Trojans’ made 3-pointers.
Angel finished with eight points and seven rebounds for Oregon. Nate Bittle, the Ducks’ leading scorer on the season coming into the contest, finished with just five points, but had six rebounds and three blocked shots before fouling out.
–Field Level Media
