USC overcame the absence of Chimezie Metu, thanks to 26 points from Jordan McLaughlin, 24 from Nick Rakocevic and 22 from Elijah Stewart. Good for McLaughlin and Stewart, who are seniors, to keep playing and never sitting out.
“Chimezie made a personal decision to not play,” USC coach Andy Enfield said. “Basically it’s a prevention of injury (decision). He’ll prepare for the NBA draft. That was a personal decision on his part. That young man deserves to make his own decision and we support him.”
Metu did not speak to the media but he took to twitter:
There were 1,614 fans at the game. Metu deleted the tweets early Wednesday morning.
USC will face Western Kentucky in a second round NIT game on Monday at 8:30 p.m. PDT at Galen Center.
InsideUSC with Scott Wolf 
You’ve got to forgive the young man – he was raised in the age of social media where impulses are made public – it was great seeing Chimeze grow up on the team. Best of luck in the league!
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The D League ?
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I don’t follow basketball closely and don’t know who Cheesy Mateu is but he must have skipped English classes. His tweets are fodder for the proof reading class. As are current articles in the paper. This morning brings a gem I can only imagine happening. The writer said a player made a basket from the bench. I have always wondered if standing on the bench, which is out of bounds, and shooting a basket was legal.
Finally the paper has UCLA on the front page of sports but USC is buried deep inside.
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You hit it on the nose with the L.A. Times gloating over that weak sister in Westwood. Even in a bad loss they make the front page of the sports section with a big article and picture. Hopefully now the ‘ruins are buried deep in their own dirt no mention of them until next season starts.
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Old Trojans Never Die,
In writing on Twitter, people usually abbreviate to save space. He is considering to going to law school, so I do think he knows how to write.
However, I have questions about him. Will he play in the later rounds and why is he sitting on the bench if he quit. I don’t care for this.
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Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out you putz
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Totally fine with Metu not playing. He didn’t come back to school for the NIT. He didn’t play great against Ayton so he could have used more tape against any decent post players USC may face going forward. But it’s his call in what is essentially an exhibition tournament. Gotta respect it. Good luck in the NBA.
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