Trojans’ Bursts Barely Enough to Hold Off Tennessee Martin : College basketball: A 14-point lead is cut to three in the final seconds, but USC wins its first road game, 78-72. Freshmen make big contributions.

After watching his team hold on for a 78-72 victory over Tennessee Martin on Saturday, USC Coach George Raveling’s suit was drenched with sweat.

“I know one thing, I’m sure going to earn my salary this year,” said Raveling, whose Trojans blew a 14-point lead late in the second half.

“The pieces are there physically. This team just needs a lot of work on the mental part of the game.”

In winning their first road game of the season, the Trojans shot 53% from the field.

The only thing that kept the score close before a crowd of 5,649 was USC’s mistakes.

Behind 15 points by senior Mark Boyd and a strong effort from freshmen Stais Boseman, Claude Green, Avondre Jones and Jaha Wilson, USC led, 36-27, at halftime.

In the second half, the Trojans (2-1) got hot from the outside and made five three-point baskets to take a 66-52 lead with seven minutes remaining before things started to fall apart.

Turnovers and bad shots helped the Pacers rally, with DeWayne Powell scoring 13 points in three minutes to cut the Trojans’ lead to 75-72 with 12 seconds remaining.

USC needed a three-point play by Lorenzo Orr with four seconds left to clinch the victory.

“This was a rough, scrappy game,” said USC guard Burt Harris, who had a cut under his left eye. “They fought us to the end, but I think that we are starting to come together now.”

At times, the Trojans looked as good as people thought they would be with the addition of their four freshmen. Those spurts, however, did not last long.

USC committed 20 turnovers and 20 fouls and was outrebounded, 34-31, by an undersized Tennessee Martin team, which fell to 1-3.

“We knew that we were a stronger team than them, but at certain points during the game we started throwing the ball away,” said USC forward Tremayne Anchrum, who made his first start of the season.

The Trojans didn’t help themselves by making only 15 of 29 free throws.

Boyd, whose mother drove from Atlanta to the game, led USC with 18 points and six rebounds. Orr finished with 16 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.

USC made nine of 17 three-point attempts, with Harris making four of six and Green three of four.

Harris finished with 15 points and six assists. Green scored 13 off the bench.

“In the last three weeks, I’ve come to realize that this team will have to scrap and claw for everything it gets,” Raveling said. “We’re not a mature team right now. We have too many peaks and valleys right now, and the only thing that is going help that is playing experience.”

Powell led Tennessee Martin with 22 points, Felipe Phillips had 16 and freshman Steve Wright scored 14.

“Overall, this was a good road trip for us,” Raveling said. “We’re still experimenting with a lot of lineups and I’m probably (using more players) than I’ve ever done. I don’t fault our effort. It’s just that we’re not playing smart.”

USC will play host to San Diego State Tuesday night at the Sports Arena.