Dixie State closed out its three-game southern California road swing on the wrong end of a 98-71 decision at No. 24 USC on Monday night inside the Galen Center.
DSU (1-4) had no early answer for the Trojans, who bolted out of the gates hitting on five of their first six shots with three 3-pointers to race out to a quick 13-2 lead.
USC (4-0) would push its lead to as many as 20 points at 26-6 before the Trailblazers (1-4) finally got into a rhythm offensively.
Cameron Gooden hit the first of five Blazer 3-pointers in the period, while
Brock Gilbert and
Frank Staine connected from the perimeter as DSU rattled off an 18-9 spurt to cut deficit to 11 at 35-24 with 4:51 to play in the half.
Dixie State kept pace with the Trojans the rest half, but could not get the deficit below double digits as the Trailblazers headed to the halftime break trailing by a 47-36 count.
DSU finally managed to make a single-digit deficit on its first possession of the second half with a
Hunter Schofield bucket, and trailed by a 53-44 count following a Gooden jumper with 17:50 remaining.
However that would be as close as Dixie State would get as USC flipped the switch on both side of the court. The Trojans outscored the Blazers 28-9 run over the next 10 minutes, including a 17-2 spurt at one point, to extend to an 81-53 advantage with just under eight minutes to play and never looked back.
Staine and Gooden paced the Trailblazers with 17 points apiece, while Schofield finished with 10 points and a season-high eight rebounds. DSU was held to a season-low 31.6 percent shooting (24-of-76), which included a paltry 11-of-41 (.268) effort in the second half.
Dixie State also struggled from the perimeter, hitting on just 6-of-24 (.250) from beyond the arc, 1-of-7 after halftime, though the Blazers did go 17-of-22 (.773) at the foul line.
Boogie Ellis led five Trojans in double figures with a game-high 19 points, while Chevez Goodwin posted a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. USC shot 52.8 percent (38-of-72) from the floor with 12 3-pointers (12-of-32; .375). The Trojans also outrebounded DSU by a 52-38 count.
Dixie State returns home for six-straight games inside the Burns Arena, starting with a post-Thanksgiving match-up against in-state foe Weber State this Saturday night. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m.
