Hoffman Leads Trojan Victory

Sophomore forward Ebony Hoffman scored a career-high 27 points and had 11 rebounds to lead USC to an 83-73 victory over Oregon in a Pacific 10 Conference game Saturday at the Sports Arena.

Hoffman who had 15 points and five rebounds in the second half, reached double figures in both categories for the fifth time this season.

The Narbonne High graduate’s efforts were critical to USC’s fortunes after Oregon rallied from a 12-point deficit to tie the score at 56 with 8:31 to play.

The Trojans, (6-5, 2-0), scored the next 12 in a row, with Hoffman accounting for six of those points, to push USC’s lead to 68-56 with 5:30 left.

The victory was USC’s third in a row.

“We’ve started the conference really well,” Hoffman said. “We’re playing like we want to, the chemistry’s there and everybody’s on the same page.”

The Trojans, who have four players averaging in double figures, also got 21 points and 10 rebounds from Aisha Hollans and 12 points from Jessica Cheeks.

Oregon (6-5, 1-1), on the other hand, struggled to fill a void left by a foot injury suffered during warm-ups by second-leading scorer Edniesha Curry.

Curry, a transfer from Cal State Northridge, limped around the sideline for much of the game, and played only 10 minutes, finishing with six points.

The Ducks stayed within striking distance most the first half.

But a three-point shot by Cheeks gave the Trojans a 43-31 lead with 20 seconds to go before the break.

In Curry’s absence, Oregon relied on Shaquala Williams, who finished with a game-high 29 points.