RENO, Nev. –  The Nevada women's basketball team dropped the Nugget Classic finale to USC on Sunday by the final score of 72-51 at Lawlor Events Center.
 
The Wolf Pack (1-4) hung with the Trojans (6-0) for three of the four quarters, but a 21-9 advantage in the second by USC proved to be the difference in the game. In the opening quarter, the two teams were trading buckets back and forth and Nevada found itself trailing by just two at the four minute mark. The Trojans quickly put up six points though over the next 1:20 to stake a 19-11 lead. A good jumper by senior Jade Redmon with under a minute left in the period closed the gap to six after 10 minutes of action.
 
The second quarter did not go Nevada's way as the Pack could not catch a break and get much to fall, shooting 3-of-17 from the field. On the other end of the floor, the Trojans shot 50 percent (8-of-16) in the second period and went on a 16-2 run that ate up five minutes off the clock. With that run, USC took a 40-22 lead into halftime.
 
In the second half, the Wolf Pack hung right with the Trojans and were outscored by just three points. The offense still struggled to get its shots to fall in the third quarter, but the Pack defense came alive and held USC to under 30 percent from the field. Nevada's best quarter of the game, and of the season, came in the fourth when the Pack connected on 63.6 percent (7-of-11) from the field and outscored the Trojans 19-18. Redmon took over that period, going 3-of-5 from the floor and totaling seven points to reach double figures for the game.
 
Redmon finished with a team-high 14 points and was named to the Nugget Classic All-Tournament team. She is the only Pack player who has scored in double figures in all five games this season. Senior Terae Briggs also reached double figures with 12, and freshman Imani Lacy recorded her first game in double figures adding 11 points. As a team, the Pack struggled from beyond the arc, hitting just 2-of-18 with the two makes coming from newcomer Mikayla Christian. Nevada did cut down on its turnovers however, committing just 13, and forced USC to make 17 turnovers.
 
Nevada will now travel to Missoula, Mont. for the Lady Griz Classic, hosted by the University of Montana. The Wolf Pack will begin the tournament this Saturday, Dec. 1 at 11 a.m. PT against UC Davis.
 
Postgame notes
-Nevada falls to 1-4 on the year after a 72-51 loss to Pac-12 foe USC.
-Senior Jade Redmon led the Wolf Pack in scoring with 14 points and has scored in double figures in all five games of the season. She was named to the Nugget Classic All-Tournament team.
-Senior Terae Briggs also reached double figures with 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
-Freshman Imani Lacy recorded her first career double digit scoring performance adding 11 points and nearly added a double-double by grabbing seven rebounds. Lacy finished 3-of-4 from the field and was 5-of-6 from the foul line.
-Nevada cut down on its turnovers, committing just 13 in the game, and forced the Trojans into 17 turnovers.
-The Wolf Pack outscored the Trojans 19-18 in the fourth quarter, shooting 63.6 percent from the field.
-The all-time series between Nevada and USC is now 3-0 in favor of the Trojans.