USC holds off UCLA in emotional rivarly game
LOS ANGELES » The USC men's basketball team blew a 14-point lead in the first half but made a 10-0 run of to begin the second half and seized control in a 62-56 win over crosstown rival UCLA on Saturday night.
The Bruins clawed back to tie the score at 34 at halftime but could not sustain that momentum in front of a sold-out crowd for the first time all season at Pauley Pavilion.
The Trojans countered and began the second half on a 16-3 surge, establishing a 50-37 lead with 9:41 to go. UCLA ended up shooting 28% in the second half, only making 7 of their final 25 shots.
However, a layup by UCLA sophomore forward Adem Bona and two free throws by freshman guard Sebastian Mack made it 60-53 with 1:30 to go. USC freshman guard Isaiah Collier made one of two free throws, which left the door open for UCLA. Bruins freshman forward Berke Buyuktuncel missed a 3-pointer with 46 seconds to go. Mack drained a 3-pointer to make it 62-56 with 8.8 seconds to left.
Senior guard Boogie Ellis scored USC's first seven points on his way to a game-high 24 points and five rebounds. Collier had 11 points. Junior guard Kobe Johnson added 10 points.
The Trojans (11-16, 5-11 Pac-12 split the season series 1-1 with the Bruins — with each team winning on the other's home floor.
Bona led UCLA (14-13, 9-7) with 14 points and three rebounds. Mack had 12 points.
Up next: UCLA at Washington, Thursday, 7:30p.m., FS1; USC at Washington State, Thursday, 7:30 p.m., Pac-12 Network
THE SCORE USC 62, UCLA 56
Junior forward Lazar Stefanovic had 10 points and six rebounds. Freshman center Aday Mara was a bright spot in the second half. He scored all 10 of his points after halftime, which kept UCLA within striking distance.
Bona went inside early and drew an early foul on USC senior center Joshua Morgan. The 6-foot-10 power forward made both free throws to put the Bruins up 2-0.
Both teams looked rusty for several minutes after tipoff, indicated by UCLA's narrow 5-4 with 15:43 left in the first. At the time USC was shooting 28.6% from the field (2 of 7). The Bruins were not faring any better, shooting 20% from the field (1 of 5).
Stefanovic drained three free throws to tie the score at 10 with 13:31 remaining in the first.
Sophomore forward Vincent Iwuchukwu's layup put USC up 20-12 midway through the first.
Ellis continued pouring it on, scoring 17 of the Trojans' first 25 points, to give them an 11-point lead at the 8:34 mark. USC freshman guard Bronny James' floater in the paint made it 27-14. James finished with two points, two rebounds and two assists in 14 minutes. He did not play in the second half.
Meanwhile, a 3-pointer by junior guard Kobe Johnson extended USC's advantage to 3319 with 5:41 to go before halftime.
The Bruins responded with a 15-1 run over the final 5:08 to close out the first half.
Bona began the surge by scoring four straight points via free throws and a second-chance layup to make it 33-23 with 4:09 left before halftime. Buyuktuncel's up-and-under layup cut it to 33-25. Stefanovic's layup and corner 3-pointer cut it to 34-30, which turned up the volume inside Pauley Pavilion. Bona's putback slam dunk made it 34-32. Mack's putback tied it at 34 with 11 seconds to go before halftime.
Ellis had 18 points in the first half. Bona and Stefanovic each had 10 points in the first half.
Meanwhile, the Trojans shot 50% from beyond the arc (7 of 14) in the first half.
USC began the second half on a 10-0 run, establishing a 4434 lead at the 15:11 mark. Mara made one of two free throws to cut it 44-35. The freshman followed that up with a mid-rise sky hook to pull within 44-37. Back-to-back layups by Collier and USC senior forward DJ Rodman, put the Trojans back up double digits, 48-37, with 11:32 to go.