Daniel Utomi scored a season-high 23 points, and host USC won its second straight with Onyeka Okongwu sidelined by defeating , Washington State in Los Angeles on Saturday.
USC (19-7, 8-5 Pac-12 Conference) closed the first half on an 18-4 run, which gave the Trojans control throughout the second half.
USC's lead expanded to 20 points early in the half, before Washington State (14-12, 5-8) went on an 8-1 tear that seemingly had the Cougars right back in the game. But as quickly as Washington State rallied, USC responded with a game-breaking 17-3 spurt to put it away.
The Trojans' lead swelled to 24 points, with a variety of scorers contributing. Ethan Anderson finished with 12 points, Elijah Weaver added 11 points off the bench, and Isaiah Mobley totaled nine points and 11 rebounds despite limping off the floor at one point in the first half.
Nick Rakocevic added 10 rebounds to contribute to USC's 45-38 edge on the glass. CJ Elleby finished with 22 points and a game-high 13 rebounds for Washington State, and Noah Williams added 10 points, but no other Cougar scored more than six.
USC played stifling defense, holding Washington State to 28.6 percent shooting from the floor. The Cougars shot just 4-of-28 from 3-point range, compared with 9-of-18 for the Trojans.
Utomi shot 5-of-10 from 3-point range, while Weaver and Anderson both went 2-of-2.
The win scored USC a crucial home sweep of the Washington schools, both as Okongwu is recovering from concussion symptoms. Okongwu sustained a head injury in a Feb. 8 loss at Arizona State.
Washington State remained winless in Pac-12 road games on the season. The Cougars began the Los Angeles road swing on Thursday with an overtime loss to UCLA, in which it led by 12 points in the second half.
--Field Level Media
