"For the last few days, smack dab in the middle of his long-awaited breakthrough at USC, Arenas had gotten sick. He'd spent the last few days worn down, leaving his status for Wednesday night's marquee matchup with No. 10 Illinois uncertain. But the Trojans star freshman had refused to sit out, resolving instead to tough it out against a true Big Ten contender, even if he wasn't at 100%."
"That its worst performance of the season came with USC clinging to the edge of the NCAA tournament bubble only added insult to injury. Those hopes hang on how USC handles its business through the final five games of its regular season. But at no point Wednesday night did the Trojans look like a team that could make some noise come March."
Alijah Arenas fell ill during his breakthrough stretch at USC but played through sickness, collapsing breathless midway through the first half. Illinois dominated, cruising to a 101-65 victory that left USC gasping. The loss was the Trojans' largest margin under coach Eric Musselman and the first game since 2019 in which USC surrendered over 100 points. Arenas managed only eight points in 18 minutes and briefly sat after appearing to tweak his injured knee. Illinois steadily pulled away amid a roaring blue-and-orange crowd, and the box score reflected USC being outworked and outclassed across multiple facets.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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