USC Basketball: 5 reasons Trojans will win the 2018 NCAA Tournament
By Stuart Gill
USC is returning all of their offensive weapons.
Of everything that could’ve happened this off-season, the way it turned out was the best possible outcome for USC. All eight of last year’s top scorers are returning to the program, including several, such as Bennie Boatwright, Chimezie Metu, and Shaqquan Aaron, whom easily could have played professionally.
Boatwright’s season was interrupted with a knee injury, but the forward came back with a vengeance. He scored 23 points in his return against Washington and ended up leading the team in scoring with just over 15 points per game. He would go on to have four more outings with more than 20 points, including games against UCLA and Arizona.
Metu provided consistent scoring all year long, scoring at least 15 points in 18 contests. He set a career-high at Washington State, with 29 points and ended the year with 28 points in the tournament loss to Baylor. He showed drastic improvement from his freshman season, in which he logged just one game with 20 or more points.
His off-season work made him the Pac-12 Most Improved Player. His athleticism is impressive given his size (6-11, 225 pounds), and he will combine with Boatwright to create a scary duo on the wings next year.
In his first year competing for the Trojans, Shaqquan Aaron wasn’t able to put up big numbers (he averaged seven points in 20 minutes last season) but his decision to stick around is big for the Trojans. At 6’7 he plays guard, offering versatility on both ends of the court that no one else on the roster has.
Despite playing a lesser role in comparison to McLaughlin and Stewart, Aaron proved he is valuable as a shooter when he is on his game. In their upset of UCLA, Aaron poured in 23 points in 26 minutes. If shoots from outside with a bit more consistency, he will become a key player for USC as they play deep into the tournament.