INDIANAPOLIS — Desmond Claude sprinted as fast as he could down the hardwood, knowing the season was in his hands and precious time was ticking off the clock. He already tried once before to tie it, flying into the fray for a floater that bounced off the back iron.
But a missed free throw gave Claude hope as he came flying across halfcourt, only for his handoff pass to be snatched amid a crashing collection of bodies. Suddenly, after such a gutsy fight, any hope of USC’s season surviving had slipped away in a 76-71 loss to Purdue.
The season-ending steal was not without controversy. Wesley Yates threw his hands up in disbelief. Coach Eric Musselman whispered expletives under his breath, shaking his head.
All game, USC (16-17) had held in a deadlock with Purdue (22-10), refusing to let up. Even as the roars of Purdue fans echoed with each back-and-forth run, USC kept coming back. They fought through early foul trouble from Claude, who finished with 18 points, and early struggles with Yates, who had 13 points.
They’d already been through a battle the night before, a double-overtime thriller that saw all five of the Trojans’ starters play more than 40 minutes. But all season, Musselman had pushed his small rotation to the brink, and Thursday, USC showed no signs of slowing.
It survived without its top scorer for long stretches. Claude picked up two quick fouls in the first half, and Musselman chose to sit him for the final 13 minutes. He returned in the second half, only to draw two more quick fouls.
With both teams deadlocked, Musselman brought Claude back in with just over 10 minutes remaining, knowing he had no other choice. From there, the Trojans floor general made up for lost time, in spite of his four fouls. He shook off a defender and hit a pull-up. Then he did it again. And again.
Claude scored 10 straight for the Trojans, hitting a pull-up with under a minute remaining to tie it.
With 28 seconds left and the game tied 71-71, Rashaun Agee was called for a foul, sending Purdue’s leading scorer, Trey Kaufman-Renn to the line. He hit both.
Claude wasted no time in trying to tie it up again, flying through the lane for a floater. But it bounced off the iron.
USC got one more chance, after Kaufman-Renn missed another free throw. This time, though, their last hopes was stripped at halfcourt.
