The star freshman stood at the free-throw line, ready to put the Trojans’ long, frustrating week behind.
One game ended in ugly defeat. Another never tipped off, a false positive coronavirus test forced USC to postpone minutes before. But after several days spent stewing in defeat, languishing in a COVID-19 scare, and bouncing among three hotel rooms, Evan Mobley stood at the stripe in Berkeley, having hit 10 of his 11 attempts, with a chance to get back on track.
He clanked one, then another. But after a long week of frustrating turns, a fortunate twist saw USC reel in the offensive rebound.