USC can't hold on, ucla wins 57-54

USC came up just short on Friday against the hated bruins and will now wait for their NCAA Tournament opponent and destination on Sunday's CBS Selection Show. Many will remember O.J. Mayo, playing in what could be his first and only Pac-10 Tournament, miss the potential game-tying 3-point attempt at the end of regulation, but that is not why the Trojans lost this game. It was a tale of two halves, but USC's brilliant 1st half performance was matched by ucla in the 2nd half. I was there in Staples Center, among mostly bruins fans, and it a tough loss to swallow. I want to reflect on this one before we move forward to the "Big Dance," when it really matters.
This game was decided when the bruins went on a 17-2 run that turned an 8-point deficit into a 7 point lead. USC put itself in a position where they had to play catchup for the entire 2nd half. That is a shame because right before that 17-2 bruins run, USC was rolling. Davon Jefferson led all scorers with 12 points at the half, and Keith Wilkinson came off the bench to hit back to back 3 pointers that put USC ahead 30-22. USC had its foot on ucla's throat, leading 34-26 in the waning seconds of the first half. Ucla was down a starter after Luc Richard Mbah a Moute left the game with an ankle injury, and freshman sensation Kevin Love had been a non-factor to that point. The Trojans were the aggressors on both sides of the court and stifled the bruins with their "triangle and 2" defense, forcing the bruins to settle for shots from the perimeter.
Momentum, however, was about to shift to the enemies from Westwood. Just before halftime, ucla's Darren Collison raced down the court and put up a desparation shot at the buzzer that sank to the bottom of the net, cutting the Trojans' lead to 34-28, and ucla was to have possession to start the 2nd half. The bruins scored a lay-up on their first possession and then stole the inbounds pass for another lay up. The Trojans were stunned as their lead was cut to 34-32. That's when Kevin Love took over, scoring the bruins' next 11 points to cap off the 17-2 run to give the bruins an insurmountable 41-34 lead. Davon Jefferson was scoreless in the 2nd half and committed 4 turnovers in the game. Taj Gibson was frustrated by ucla's aggresive double teams and finished with a lowly 5 points and 4 turnovers.

The bruins just outplayed us in the 2nd half, mostly due to Kevin Love, who finished with a game high 19 points and 10 rebounds. Bruins coach Ben Howland adjusted well to the triangle and 2 defense and forced Tim Floyd to abandon it and play a traditional man to man defense down the stretch. The bruins then held on and survived a late flurry from Mayo who scored 5 straight points to cut the lead to 2 at 54-52. After an exchange of free throws, USC trailed by only 3 at 57-54, and the stage was set for a classic finish. Mayo would have become an instant legend if he could have buried that 3 pointer over Josh Shipp. I would have liked our chances in overtime, especially after weathering the storm and battling back to tie the game, but instead he'll have to wait for Mayo to pull of some March Madness magic in the NCAA Tournament.

Fight On!
[photos] courtesy of: LA Times

USC 59 Arizona State 55

USC handled the Sun Devils and now sets its eyes on the hated bruins for a semifinal game today at 6pm (PST). Some people have said the refs gave this game to the Trojans after ASU's Jeff Pendergraph was called for an over the back foul with 16 seconds left in the game and the Trojans leading 57-55. Instead of tying the game, Pendergraph received his 5th foul and USC's Davon Jefferson hit both free throws that virtually sealed the win for the Trojans. Although I agree that it was a bad call, to say the refs gave the game away is not fair to the Trojans. USC played some terrific defense down the stretch, limiting the Sun Devils to 28.6% shooting in the 2nd half and not allowing a field goal in the last 9:35 of the game. Daniel Hackett frustrated ASU's James Harden all game long as he shot 6-13 from the field for 16 points. O.J. Mayo turned in another solid performance with 23 points and 6 assists. Just win and move on to the next round, that's what March Madness is all about and that's what the team did yesterday.

Now it's on to today's semifinal matchup against ucla. Throw out the records and seedings in this game. I like USC's chances but if they are to win, they need to cut down significantly on the turnovers. USC's 19 turnovers yesterday led to 24 points for the Sun Devils. We all remember O.J. Mayo's forgettable stat line against the bruins at the Galen Center -- 4 points, 10 turnovers. To say that Mayo has rebounded nicely since that game would be an understatement. Both teams have been on a tear lately, USC having won 6 of 7 and ucla having won 8 in a row. Missing from the last contest was Daniel Hackett, who should be a big factor today defensively. PCBestever and I will be there, albeit in the nose-bleed section, but we'll be there supporting our guys. Remeber tip-off is at 6pm.

Fight On! Beat the bruins!!

Pac-10 Tournament Underway

The Pac-10 Conference Tournament got underway last night with 9th seeded Cal defeating 8th seeded Washington 84-81 in a very entertaining game. The Cal-Berkeley Golden Bears will now get another crack at top-seeded ucla today at about 2:30pm. In the nightcap, 7th seeded Arizona blew past 10th seeded Oregon State 87-56 and now sets up a key game against #2 Stanford later tonight.

USC tips off against Arizona State at noon (PST) and will look to avenge their March 1st loss in Tempe. The Sun Devils defeated the Trojans 80-66 and a controversial game where the Devils shot what seemed like 100 free throws to about 5 for USC. The key for the Trojans will be stopping freshman sensation James Harden, who had his way with Dwight Lewis in the last meeting, finishing with 24 points. You can catch the action on FSN. We'll be back tonight with a post-game write up.

Fight On! Beat the Devils!

Trojans sweep Cal and Stanford

The USC Trojans defeated 7th ranked Stanford 77-64 earlier this afternoon and will enter the Pac-10 Tournament on fire after sweeping the bay area schools this weekend. The men closed out the regular season in style with a record of (20-10) overall and (11-7) in the Pac-10, finishing tied for 3rd in the conference with Washington State. USC played out of its mind on Saturday, and reaped the rewards of the incredible effort that they put into this game on both ends of the floor. O.J. Mayo led the Trojans in scoring yet again with 25 points, but it was a total team effort tonight. The Trojans out-rebounded the Cardinal 47-31, despite the presence of Stanford's 7-foot Lopez twins, thanks to the play of forwards Taj Gibson (20 pts, 11 rebs) and Keith Wilkinson (4 pts, 8 rebs) and some help from the guards (Mayo had 8 rebs). USC's defense was able to contain the twins for most of the game by using a lot of full-court pressure, speeding up the tempo of the game and taking them out of their comfort level. Offensively, Mayo continued his hot play and put on a show in front of a CBS national tv audience. Those who tuned in were not disappointed, as seen by plays like this...

[video courtesy of USChoops.com Message Board]

Lost in Mayo's current hot streak is the re-emergence of Taj Gibson, who got off to a slower than expected start this season. He's been our steadiest player since the Trojans got off to that dismal (0-3) start in Pac-10 play. USC is (11-4) since then, which is incredible when you consider the absence of starting point guard Daniel Hackett, but that would not have been possible without Gibson. He had that key blocked shot in the closing minutes of USC's win at ucla, and carried the team on his back when we hosted the bruins at the Galen Center. Gibson has been scoring at will, staying out of foul trouble, controlling the boards, blocking shots, and playing with emotion out there. USC seems to be peaking at just the right time. Coach Tim Floyd has found two very reliable players off the bench in Wilkinson and point guard Angelo Johnson, who has started some games and played some valuable minutes for Hackett both at the beginning of the season and during his recent back injury. With the regular season in the books, Coach Floyd can now start gearing his squad for the "Big Dance." Let's take a quick peak at next week's Pac-10 Tournament, hosted by the Staples Center, which gets underway Wednesday evening.

The Trojans have earned the #4 seed in the Pac-10 Tourney, having lost the tie-breaker since they were swept by Washington State, and will play 5th-seeded Arizona State in a quarterfinal match-up on Thursday at approximately 6pm (PST). USC is a lock for the NCAA Tournament, but it can go a long way towards improving its seeding with an impressive showing at Staples. USC's two most recent losses came against the teams that they will likely face in the next two games. The prospects of facing Arizona State (quarterfinal opponent) and ucla (potential semifinal opponent) on consecutive nights makes for a very intriguing tournament. I expect every die hard Trojan, living in the L.A. area to come out and support our team. We made it to the final last year, let's go out and finish it this time. Below is the bracket (click on image to enlarge), courtesy of USChoops.com:Great season guys, but there's still work to do.

Fight On! Beat the Devils!