Southern California Trojans vs Utah Utes Match Player Stats On Jan 22, 2022

Drew Peterson scored a season-high 23 points with five 3-pointers Saturday to lead 16th-ranked Southern California to a 79-67 win over Utah in Salt Lake City.

Peterson drained 9-of-10 shots overall, including a 5-for-5 showing beyond the arc, and grabbed seven rebounds as the Trojans won for the second time on their Rocky Mountain road trip. USC (16-2, 6-2 Pac-12) eked out a win at Colorado on Thursday.

Boogie Ellis added 18 points and Isaiah Mobley contributed 10 points, six rebounds and five assists for USC.

Gabe Madsen scored a season-high 20 points for Utah, but the Utes (8-12, 1-9) shot only 36.1 percent from the field en route to their eighth straight loss.

Though 10 Utes scored, Lazar Stefanovic was the only other Utah player in double figures with 10 points.

USC drained 50.9 percent of its field goals, outrebounded the Utes 42-31 and outscored the home team 40-20 in the paint. The Trojans were especially effective in the second half, hitting 58.6 percent of their shots while turning a five-point halftime lead into a double-digit victory.

The Utes went up 11-8 after a putback layup by Jaxon Brenchley, but the lead was short-lived.

Ellis took advantage of offensive rebounds on consecutive possessions, hitting back-to-back 3s, and then drained a couple of free throws for a personal 8-0 run that gave USC a 16-11 lead.

The Trojans then used an 11-0 run -- capping a 21-3 surge -- to seize a 29-14 advantage.

Utah showed life before halftime, outscoring USC 10-2 in the final three minutes of the first half to pull within five at 35-30.

Marco Anthony opened the second half with a pair of free throws as Utah trimmed the lead to three.

But Peterson hit a 3-pointer, and USC gradually pulled away, eventually going up by 18 points. Utah went on a 9-0 streak to creep within nine, 56-47, but that was as close as it could get the rest of the way.

--Field Level Media