USC forward Chimezie Metu remained in the starting lineup during Saturday night’s game at UCLA.
Replays captured Metu attempting to trip Oregon forward Chris Boucher while sitting on the bench in the second half of the Trojans’ 81-70 loss on Feb. 11, raising the possibility that he might face some form of discipline in the next game.
A Pac-12 spokesman said the conference had reviewed the matter as part of its weekly protocol and discussed it with USC. There was no suspension.
Asked after a practice during the week if Metu might be disciplined, USC coach Andy Enfield shook his head to say no.
His spot in the rotation was unaltered.
Enfield said he did speak with the 6-foot-11 sophomore about the sequence.
“He’s a competitor and a great kid,” Enfield said. “We’ve had our talks. We expect his emotions to be channeled in a positive way.”
Duke earlier this season had suspended guard Grayson Allen for one game after Allen tripped an opposing player in a game against Elon in December. It was Allen’s third tripping incident in a 10-month span and created an onslaught of national media attention.
Metu was averaging 14.2 points and 7.4 rebounds in 31.2 minutes per game entering Saturday’s game against UCLA, including 13 points and seven rebounds in the earlier game against the Bruins.
Staying in zone
In USC’s 84-76 victory over UCLA in January, the Trojans frequently turned to a 2-3 zone defense during the first.
It appeared to work, stifling the Bruins, who ended up with 17 turnovers.
The Trojans often relied on a zone defense while playing without sophomore forward Bennie Boatwright for 15 games.
It was a look they again presented to UCLA during the first half Saturday. In the first 20 minutes, the Bruins had seven turnovers.
Bracket watch
The latest report from Bracket Matrix, an aggregate of online projected brackets, pegged the Trojans as a No. 8 seed for the NCAA Tournament prior to Saturday.
USC was seeded eighth last season when it lost to Providence in the first round.
It was its first appearance in the field of 68 in five seasons.
Late starts
Saturday’s matchup marked another late tipoff time between USC and UCLA.
When the teams met at the Galen Center in January, it was set for an 8 p.m. start time. It was 7 p.m. on Saturday.
Last season, tipoff came at 7:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Slow beginning
Redshirt sophomore guard Shaqquan Aaron scored a career-high 23 points in 21 minutes off the bench last game against UCLA.
He was named Pac-12 Player of the Week as a result.
Aaron got off to a slow start in the rematch, making 1 of 6 shots in the first half Saturday.
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