Point Guards Struggle With Turnovers

The loss of point guard Kevin Augustine, who left the team in mid-December, appears to be hurting USC more and more as the weeks go by.

Augustine came into fall practice as a projected starter, a sophomore expected to provide veteran leadership after starting 10 games last season. Since his departure, freshman Brandon Granville and junior college transfer Quincy Wilder have done their best to fill in.

The newcomers have played well at times, but they have also shown their inexperience, especially against Pacific 10 opponents.

The Trojans are averaging 16.1 assists compared to 18.1 turnovers, ranking them seventh in the conference. Against Washington State, they had 12 assists and 21 turnovers, with many of those miscues coming at point guard.

“Some of our passes weren’t even close to being completed,” Coach Henry Bibby said.

Granville, who despite his freshman struggles ranks sixth in the conference with 4.7 assists a game, said: “Nothing was going right. It seemed like everything was breaking down and we couldn’t get in a rhythm.”

Coming up: Oregon State on Thursday, Oregon on Saturday.