LOS ANGELES, CA – The Monmouth men's basketball team battled back from a 16-point first half deficit to go in front multiple times in a game that saw the lead change 12 times, but eventually fell to Pac-12 member USC on Monday night at the Galen Center, 101-90 on Monday night in Los Angeles. Junior guard Justin Robinson (Lake Katrine, NY/Kingston) scored a career-high 28 points in the loss that drops Monmouth to 1-1 on the season after splitting a pair of Pac-12 matchups in Southern California. The Trojans improve to 2-0 this year.

"I have to give USC a lot of credit," said head coach King Rice. "[USC head coach] Andy Enfield had his team prepared for what we do with a short time to turn it around. I'm very proud of our kids, and I probably should have helped them more by calling a few timeouts to try to get them a bucket here or there."

USC used a 17-8 run in the final 3:29 to pull away after Chris Brady (Greenlawn, NY/Harborfields) corralled a weakside rebound and put it back to cut the Trojan lead to two. Back-to-back triples from Katin Reinhardt and Elijah Stewart just 35 seconds apart stretched the lead to eight, and USC made nine free throws after that point to secure the win.

Monmouth led by as many as three in the second half when Austin Tilghman (Wilmington, DE/Archbishop Carroll [PA]) put home a hard drive through the lane to make it 63-60 with 11:07 remaining. Neither team led by more than four throughout the next four minutes, with Jordan McLaughlin scoring on two of three trips with a Nikola Jovanovic layup sandwiched in between. MU answered to tie the game at 66 when Collin Stewart (Glenville, NY/Mekeel Christian Academy) knocked down a deep wing three with the shot clock expiring with 8:56 remaining.

The home team rebounded to go up five on McLaughlin's drive with 6:22 left, but a pair of Micah Seaborn (Arlington, TX/Prime Prep Academy) free throws and a Robinson three ball would cut the lead to 77-76 with 5:04 to go. Robinson again made it a one-point game with 4:31 to play when his pair of free throws put him over his career-best in scoring.

Straight out of the second half gate, Seaborn connected from deep to give MU the lead. Deon Jones (Wilmington, DE/Sanford School [Towson]) and Seaborn would both hit in the early minutes to give Monmouth leads as the advantage changed six times in the first three minutes of the second half.

USC leapt out to an immediate 13-2 lead, hitting five of their first six from the field in the first 2:45. The lead ballooned to 16 at the 9:52 mark when a 5-0 spurt saw Julian Jacobs bury a three and Jovanovic convert a three-point play inside. Brady had six of Monmouth's first eight points.

The lead hovered around that mark until a 31-16 stretch for the Hawks put them in front. Jones converted on a wild up-and-under move plus the foul, and after free throws from Jones and Je'lon Hornbeak (Arlington, TX/Grace Prep [Oklahoma]), Stewart drilled a corner triple to cut it to 12. Robinson came down on the next possession and lined one home from downtown before Seaborn scored five straight, three of those on a pull up from the right wing beyond the arc. Robinson's teardrop in the lane led to a Jones three-pointer just two possessions later before Monmouth eventually found the lead on a dribble drive from Jones with 1:47 left in the half. USC took a 47-46 lead into the locker room before eventually outscoring Monmouth 54-44 in the second stanza.

Robinson scored a career-best 28 points on 9-17 shooting and 6-6 from the foul line. He also contributed three assists and three steals. Jones had 20 points and eight rebounds, shooting 6-11 from the field and 7-8 from the stripe. For the second straight game, Seaborn scored 14 and posted four assists. Stewart hit three more threes for a total of 12 points, while Brady put up eight points and seven rebounds.

USC got a double-double of 20 points and 12 rips from Jovanovic, while McLaughlin scored 22 with seven rebounds and four assists. Elijah Stewart also had 20, and Julian Jacobs put up 19 and eight rebounds to go with seven assists.

MU shot 43.5% from the floor, 38.5% from deep and 83.3% from the free throw line. USC was 50.7% on the night, 35% from downtown and 68.8% from the charity stripe.

"I'm super proud, we have a lot to work with," added Rice. "The journey is just beginning and I'll be excited to get back home and get back on the floor on Wednesday."

The Hawks split the California trip and head to Drexel with a 1-1 record next Saturday. Tipoff in Philadelphia against the Dragons is set for 2:00pm.