Trojans don’t hit bottom

There was a moment midway through the second half Saturday afternoon when USC faced the prospect of losing something far more significant than another Pacific 10 Conference game.

Trojans guard O.J. Mayo took a scary spill underneath the basket after getting fouled on a shot attempt, landing squarely on his right hip. Visibly shaken, the freshman stayed in the game to make both free throws but signaled to the bench that he needed to come out a few seconds later.

With its leading scorer grimacing in pain on the sideline, USC quickly relinquished its lead against Washington at the Galen Center, conjuring fears of a collapse in conference play.

“I couldn’t imagine going 0-4 and playing UCLA at their place,” sophomore guard Daniel Hackett would say later.

But the Trojans need not worry after pulling together for a 66-51 victory over the Huskies that gave them their first Pac-10 triumph and some confidence heading into Saturday’s game against fifth-ranked UCLA.

“Man, it feels so much better. Better than losing,” said Mayo, who returned for most of the final 10 minutes and insisted afterward that his hip was fine.

Two days after giving up down the stretch of a loss to Washington State, USC buckled down against Washington for a late 14-0 run that transformed a 43-42 deficit into a 56-43 lead.

It was the zero side of that push that most pleased the Trojans, who improved to 10-6 overall and 1-3 in Pac-10 play after forcing 20 turnovers and holding the Huskies to 33.3% shooting.

“It all came down to defensive transition and defensive stops,” sophomore forward Taj Gibson said. “That’s what we’re known for.”

Washington forward Jon Brockman had a typically strong game with 16 points and 10 rebounds, but forward Quincy Pondexter needed 17 shots to score 11 points and guard Ryan Appleby missed all five shots and went scoreless.

USC Coach Tim Floyd credited sophomore guard Dwight Lewis for his ability to limit Appleby’s touches and also for his play at the offensive end, where Lewis scored a game-high 17 points on seven-for-12 shooting.

“If he can do those two things he can really, really help this basketball team,” Floyd said.

Even though USC built an 11-point lead in the first half and still led by six at halftime, things were looking shaky for the Trojans when Brockman went in for a put-back that gave the Huskies (9-7, 0-3) a 43-42 lead with 10 minutes 32 seconds remaining. In the USC timeout that followed about a minute later, Gibson said the Trojans “just looked at each other and just said we were going to guard.”

USC forced four turnovers in the next three minutes and zipped ahead behind a driving layup by freshman guard Angelo Johnson, a dunk by Gibson and two free throws by freshman forward Davon Jefferson. After Mayo banked in a short pull-up jumper and then hit a three-pointer from the wing, the Trojans had a 53-43 lead and were well on the way to victory.

Jefferson was back in the starting lineup and scored 10 points in 28 minutes one game after not playing against Washington State because Floyd said he had “a lot of room for growth.” But Floyd unfurled another changeup with his starting five, replacing Hackett with Johnson and attributing it to “matchups” even though Johnson said he had been dizzy earlier in the day and required intravenous fluids at halftime.

Hackett had acknowledged Friday that the Trojans quit in the final minutes against Washington State.

“Just coach’s decision,” Hackett said when asked why he came off the bench for the first time this season. “It’s all about team and winning today.”

Johnson played with a burst of energy in the second half, helping USC end a sometimes trying week that began with a rare Sunday team meeting and included an even rarer outdoor practice after the Washington State loss.

“Coach told us at the beginning of the year that it’s going to be a hard road,” Gibson said. “We can give up and be one of those lackadaisical teams or we can keep fighting and don’t feel bad for ourselves.

“This game was a big test for some of our young guys, getting this first win, and it felt good. I’m happy we got this first win because the Pac-10 is a strong conference and right now it’s a fight to get to the NCAA tournament.”

ben.bolch@latimes.com

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Floyd vs. Pac-10

USC’s record vs. Pac-10 teams since Tim Floyd became coach before the 2005-06 season:

Arizona: 3-1

Arizona State: 2-2

California: 2-4

Oregon: 3-2

Oregon State: 4-0

Stanford: 3-3

UCLA: 1-3

Washington: 2-3

Washington State: 2-4

Total: 22-22