Their frustrating midseason slump was finally in the rear-view mirror, their season finally feeling back on track.
USC came into Thursday night’s matchup with Indiana on the heels of a four-game winning streak. Wins over No. 8 Iowa, Rutgers, Northwestern and Illinois, two of which came on the road, had cemented its place on the right side of the NCAA tournament bubble. But with four regular-season games remaining, two of which are against top 10 teams, the Trojans still couldn’t afford to get too comfortable.
Thursday night felt fitting then, as the Hoosiers never quite let USC get comfortable, forcing the Trojans to earn every bit of their fifth straight victory in a 79-73 win at Galen Center.
Outside of a second-quarter surge, when they shot 52%, the Trojans offense struggled to find its stride. That was especially true from three-point range, as USC (16-9 overall, 8-6 in the Big Ten) continued its consistent shooting from deep, having hit just 25% from long range in the last two weeks.
Jazzy Davidson continued to be the Trojans’ most dynamic source of offense, as the freshman sensation followed up a career-high, 27-point performance with yet another strong, stat-stuffing showing. She scored 24 while tallying six rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks.
USC still found itself in a precarious place late, up just a single bucket with less than two minutes remaining. But Kennedy Smith put the finishing touches on any Indiana comeback, snagging the ball away from Hoosier guard Lenee Davenport in the final minute as she tried to lift up for a lay-in.
Indiana was playing without the Big Ten’s leading scorer, Shay Ciezki, who is averaging 24 points per game this season, as well as their third-leading scorer, Zania Socka-Nguemen. Still, the Hoosiers managed, for the most part, to match the Trojans on offense.
USC didn’t look early on like a team that had found solid ground. The Trojans went six straight minutes in the first without a field goal, then gave up an 8-0 run to Indiana in the final 1:22 of the quarter.
They spent the next quarter climbing out of that hole, sparked by Davidson, who was fresh off her fifth Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors. Davidson had 10 points in the second alone, while the Hoosiers had just 13 total, USC’s defense clamping down after a sloppy start.
With Indiana’s attention on Davidson, Kara Dunn and Smith helped the Trojans eke out front after the half. But the Hoosiers tied the score one possession into the fourth quarter.
An elbow to the face of guard Malia Samuels gave the Trojans free throws and a seven-point lead with just four minutes remaining in the game. Still, a foul from Dunn on a corner three-pointer by Indiana’s Maya Makalusky opened the door for the Hoosiers.
Makalusky, who led all scorers with 29, hit another three to again cut the lead to a single possession. But the Trojans held on from there.
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