For USC, Big Distraction Was UCLA’s ‘56’ Defense

USC Coach Stan Morrison could have said that distractions contributed to his team’s 66-56 loss to UCLA Wednesday night at Pauley Pavilion.

The so-called distractions came the day before when freshman forward Tom Lewis said there was turmoil in USC’s basketball program, then recanted the statement later.

But Morrison and Lewis brushed aside distractions as any excuse for losing to the Bruins. In fact, both coach and player praised UCLA lavishly.

“Distractions had nothing to do with it,” Morrison said. “If there was any distraction, it was UCLA’s defense.”

That defense kept USC in check most of the game as the Trojans shot only 35.7% from the field, just 32.3% in the second half, and committed 17 turnovers.

“The Bruin defense was sensational,” Morrison said. “It took us out of our offense. We couldn’t beat anybody the way we executed our offense. Against UCLA’s defensive game plan, you really have to execute. I am terribly disappointed.”

Lewis, who has lost some weight lately and is worn down, according to Morrison, said the Trojans were tired. He was alluding to the toll from recent road trips to Berkeley and Fayetteville, Ark., for games against California and Arkansas.

“But that’s no excuse,” Lewis said. “UCLA deserved to win. They scouted us real well. They were waiting for us every time we cut to the key.

“I wasn’t nervous at all. I was just concentrating on my game. It wasn’t hard to concentrate (regarding distractions), and I had prepared for the game all day.”

Lewis scored 12 points, six below his average, while making only 4 of 13 shots. He is in a bit of a slump, having made 11 of 41 shots from the field in the last three games.

“Reggie Miller played well,” Lewis said of the UCLA forward. “I didn’t think he was that good of a defender.”

Miller, who got 21 points on 6-of-12 shooting and on 9 of 10 free throws, tracked Lewis most of the game.

“I know Tommy is a great offensive player, and I took it upon myself to shut him down,” Miller said. “All year long I wanted this game and I wanted Lewis. I’m sure he wanted me, and he got me.”

By winning, UCLA broke out of a four-way tie for fifth place in the Pacific 10 and advanced to .500 with a 4-4 conference record. USC dropped to 3-5.

It was a significant win for the Bruins. Not only did they snap a three-game winning streak by the Trojans, but they also avoided a loss that would have given them their worst conference record at this juncture of the year since 1947-48, the season before John Wooden began his coaching reign.

“We looked like a very tense team,” Morrison said. “That tenseness kept us from going ahead in the second half.”

The Trojans rallied to tie the score at 29-29 at halftime, but the Bruins went on a 13-2 run at the outset of the second half, and the spurt proved decisive.

USC managed to close to 52-50 with 3:49 remaining before UCLA guard Pooh Richardson, a factor the entire game, hit a 15-foot jumper from the foul line.

After guard Bo Kimble took what Morrison called an ill-advised shot, UCLA pulled away again, burying the Trojans with some accurate free-throw shooting in the closing minutes.

“We just had a bad shooting night, and we were sluggish,” said Kimble, who missed 9 of his 13 shots after shooting a combined 28 of 39 in three previous games.

Kimble, a freshman who plays regularly, said that the Trojans fell apart when Larry Friend left.

Friend, USC’s senior point guard and playmaker, got his fourth foul with 13 1/2 minutes left in the second half and sat down. He didn’t return.

Kimble and Hank Gathers, another USC freshman, were renewing a friendly rivalry with Richardson. Kimble and Gathers played for Dobbins Tech in Philadelphia, while Richardson performed for rival Ben Franklin High School in the same city.

The three players visit one another off the court, and they exchanged pleasantries before the game.

“Our rivalry in high school was like the USC-UCLA rivalry,” Kimble said. “We’re friends, but it doesn’t affect the way we play against each other.”

Richardson won the transplanted Philadelphia war this time as he scored 16 points, many in clutch situations, grabbed 5 rebounds and had 3 assists.

“I know a lot about Kimble and Gathers and told our team about their strong and weak points,” Richardson said. “I think that really helped us, especially with Montel (Hatcher) guarding Bo.”

There were other reasons for UCLA’s victory, and Morrison named a number of them.

“We didn’t screen people, and there were so many loose balls that we didn’t grab,” he said. “We telegraphed passes and didn’t get into the offensive flow like UCLA did. And we didn’t shoot well.”

Is there anything else?