USC’s quest to reach the Final Four for the first time since 1954 ended Tuesday evening with an 85-66 loss to undefeated Gonzaga in the West Regional final.
The sixth-seeded Trojans never led, allowed the game’s first seven points and trailed 17-4 five minutes, 32 seconds into the game, with the top-seeded Bulldogs converting four turnovers into six points.
USC’s biggest first-half deficit was 21 points, 36-15, 6:03 before halftime after the Bulldogs scored seven unanswered points at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
The Trojans responded with an 8-0 run on Isaiah Mobley’s layup and 3-point baskets by Tahj Eaddy and Mobley, cutting Gonzaga’s lead to 36-23 with 4:29 left in the first half.
USC would get no closer, trailing 49-30 at halftime and by at least 16 throughout the second half.
The Trojans (25-8) made 24 of 62 shots, 38.7%, including four of 15 3-point shots, and 14 of 19 free throws, 73.7%. Gonzaga made 33 of 66 shots, 50%, including seven of 21 3-points shots, and 12 of 17 free throws, 70.6%.
Sophomore forward Drew Timme scored a game-high 23 points as Gonzaga (30-0) extended its school-record winning streak to 34 games. Freshman guard Jalen Suggs and senior forward Corey Kispert each added 18.
Mobley led USC with 19. His younger brother Evan Mobley added 17, Drew Peterson 13 and Eaddy 11.
The Trojans were playing in the Elite Eight for the first time since 2001 and fourth overall. The Trojans reached the Final Four in 1940, when the tournament consisted of eight teams, and 1954.
The Bulldogs advanced to the Final Four for the second time and will face UCLA Saturday for a berth in the national championship game. The 11th-seeded Bruins upset top-seeded Michigan, 51-49, in the East Regional final later Tuesday also at Lucas Oil Stadium, where the Final Four will be played.
Gonzaga lost to North Carolina, 71-65, in the 2017 championship game, its first Final Four appearance after three earlier trips to the Elite Eight.
The Bulldogs are seeking to become the eighth team to win a national championship with an undefeated record and the first since Indiana went 32-0 in the 1975-76 season.