Southern California opened the Eric Musselman era with a 77-51 rout of visiting Chattanooga at home in Los Angeles on Monday.
The Trojans, playing their first game under the new head coach, took control with a 10-0 run early in the second half.
Chibuzo Agbo ignited the run with back-to-back 3-pointers, part of his team-high 14 points. Agbo shot 4-of-9 from beyond the arc for the night.
Seven USC scorers finished with at least eight points, a group that included Matt Knowling with 13 points. Knowling went a perfect 6-of-6 shooting from the floor.
The Trojans’ Saint Thomas added nine points and five rebounds. Desmond Claude and Wesley Yates III also scored nine points, while Rashaun Agee and Isaiah Elohim shot a combined 7-of-9 from the floor and scored eight points each.
Yates played a key role in USC’s 9-2 run leading into halftime. He was in on seven of USC’s nine points in that stretch, scoring five points and assisting Knowling on a basket.
USC finished with 21 assists among their 32 field goals. Ten of the 12 who played passed for at least one assist.
The effective ball movement helped the Trojans shoot 50 percent from the floor. Defensively, USC overwhelmed Chattanooga into shooting only 27.8 percent (15-of-54) from the floor, including just 6-of-34 from 3-point range.
Honor Huff accounted for all but one of the Mocs’ made 3-pointers, going 5-of-13 from deep en route to 17 points. Huff was Chattanooga’s only scorer in double figures.
USC held Trey Bonham, the Southern Conference Preseason Player of the Year, to six points on just 1-of-10 shooting. Garrison Keeslar finished with eight points, five rebounds and four assists for Chattanooga.