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Eric Musselman reveals play USC 'never worked on' in game-winner over Penn State

IMG_6598by: Nick Kosko02/08/26nickkosko59

Eric Musselman went deep into his bag for the game-winner as USC beat Penn State 77-75 on the road. Alijah Arenas, the son of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas, hit the game winning bucket to give USC their 18th win of the season.

He also led the team in scoring with 24 points, to go along with three rebounds and two assists. USC trailed 40-36 and by double digits throughout the game before stealing one on the road.

“We ran a little zipper with the double stagger on a side out that we’ve never worked on,” Musselman said on Big Ten Network postgame. “It brought back memories for his dad, Gilbert. I ran that same play against the Knicks once, same result, a bucket to win.”

As you can see in the video, Arenas had a bit of a spin as he drove into the paint. Once the ball floated out of his hand, it found its way through the basket and gave USC the win.

“It was a great team win, a great win on the road,” Arenas said postgame. “Can’t complain about nothing. I’m blessed to be here.”

In addition to Arenas, Musselman saw contributions from three others that got into double digits. Kam Woods finished with 13 points, five rebounds and nine assists. Not only that, Ezra Ausar put up 13 points, two rebounds and one assist.

To round it out, Jacob Cofie had 10 points and seven rebounds. It was a total team effort Sunday afternoon.

But Arenas’ performance and game-winning bucket are products of hard work by the freshman. Musselman recently raved about the improvements.

“I think it was the Iowa game,” Eric Musselman said. “He hit back-to-back buckets but then he picked up his second foul in the first half. We do take guys out in the first half if they have two fouls. Not that everybody has to agree with it, but that’s what we do.”

Alijah Arenas is the son of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas and was a five-star recruit in the Class of 2025. To become a member of the Class of 2025, he had to reclassify from the Class of 2026. He was the 12th-ranked prospect overall in that recruiting cycle.

Over the summer, Arenas suffered a knee injury that forced him to miss the early part of the season. He’d eventually make his debut against Northwestern on January 21st.