Ezra Ausar scored 25 points and Southern California used a strong second half to beat Seton Hall 83-80 in a matchup of undefeated teams Tuesday in the Maui Invitational semifinals at Lahaina, Hawaii.
Ausar went 15 of 19 on free throws — giving him more attempts than Seton Hall had as a team.
Chad Baker-Mazara, who made clutch plays in the final minute, posted 18 points and Rodney Rice supplied 13 points for USC (6-0).
The Trojans meet the Arizona State-Washington State winner in Wednesday’s title game. Seton Hall (6-1) takes on the loser in the third-place game.
Adam Clark’s 18 points and A.J. Staton-McCray’s 17 points led Seton Hall, while Mike Williams III added 13 points and Elijah Fisher finished with 10.
Staton-McCray’s 3-pointer with 1:02 following USC’s backcourt turnover pulled the Pirates even at 78-78.
Baker-Mazzara broke a tie with two free throws at the 27-second mark. Baker-Mazzara then stole the ball on Seton Hall’s ensuing possession before Jordan Marsh then made one of two free-throw attempts for an 81-78 lead with 13 seconds left.
The Trojans fouled rather than allowing Seton Hall to take a potential tying 3-pointer, with Williams draining both free throws with six seconds to go. Marsh sank two foul shots at the other end and USC opted to foul again and Seton Hall’s Elijan Fisher added a free throw for the final point.
The Trojans finished with a 31-12 advantage in free-throw scoring.
USC was hurt by 16 turnovers, negating some of the impact of a 35-21 edge on the boards.
USC broke out to a 69-61 lead with 7:19 remaining during a stretch of about four minutes when the Pirates scored two points.
Seton Hall built a 32-19 lead with about six minutes left in the first half. USC closed within 42-38 by the break, scoring nine of the final 11 points of the half.
