USC breezes by Pepperdine

[December 12, 2016]  Elijah Stewart scored 26 points and made seven 3-pointers, helping USC remain unbeaten with a 93-67 victory over visiting Pepperdine on Sunday night at the Galen Center in Los Angeles.

Jordan McLaughlin had 18 points and six assists for USC (9-0), which is off to its best start since winning 16 in a row to begin the 1971-72 season. Nick Rakocevic had 13 points and nine rebounds. Shaqquan Aaron also scored 13 points. Chimezie Metu had 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Jeremy Major scored 19 points for Pepperdine (4-6). Chris Reyes had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Lamond Murray Jr. had 11 points.

The Trojans had not played since beating BYU on Dec. 3. The long layoff didn't seem to hurt them. They outscored the Waves 11-2 over the first five minutes and went up 20-6 on a 3-pointer by Jonah Matthews.

USC maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way. The Trojans took a 32-17 lead on a free throw by Harrison Henderson, went up by 16 on a dunk by Metu and carried a comfortable 48-30 advantage into the locker room at the break.

Pepperdine shot nearly 42 percent and made 3 of 8 from 3-point range in the first half. USC shot better than 53 percent, drained five 3-pointers and made 11 of their 14 free-throw attempts. The Waves attempted only two free throws.

USC continued to expand its lead early in the second period. The Trojans took a 54-32 lead on a 3-pointer by Aaron and went up by 27 on a 3-pointer by Stewart. They extended the lead to 30 on a 3-pointer by McLaughlin and led by as many as 35 midway through the second half.

USC shot 56.6 percent from the field and made 12 of 23 from 3-point range. Pepperdine shot 38.8 percent.

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