Bluthenthal, as a Sub, Jump-Starts Trojans

David Bluthenthal didn’t start the game for USC against Oregon on Saturday. But once he got in, he might have saved the Trojans’ season, as far as an NCAA tournament bid is concerned.

The 6-foot-7 junior forward had 29 points, equaling his career high. His fifth three-point basket--also tying a career high--opened the scoring in overtime, gave the Trojans the lead for good, and sparked USC to a badly needed 87-80 victory over the Ducks before 9,087 at McArthur Court.

To force the first overtime basketball game between the schools, USC had to rally from a 72-60 deficit with 5:22 to play. The Trojans ran off 13 consecutive points to go ahead, and had a 76-73 lead with 30 seconds left before Duck guard Frederick Jones tied the score with a three-point play.

Brandon Granville (15 points) had a final shot in regulation, but it fell short. Bluthenthal scored the first five points in overtime, the Trojan defense gave up only one Duck basket in nine shots, and USC--which had dropped four of six coming in and had lost to its last two games by a combined 59 points--broke through the mini-slump that had gripped the team the past two weeks.

USC improved to 18-7, its most wins under Coach Henry Bibby, and 8-6 in the Pacific 10 Conference. Oregon fell to 13-12, 4-11. It was the first time since 1997 USC had swept the season series with Oregon and the first time since 1993 the Trojans have won 18 games.

“David was unbelievable tonight,” Bibby said. “I need to bring him off the bench every night if he’s going to play like that. He was tenacious on the boards [eight rebounds], had several steals [five]. His game is shooting the basketball, rebounding and posting up. And he did that tonight.”

Bluthenthal said he had told the coaches he didn’t deserve to start after going 0 for 9 Thursday against Oregon State.

“I was excited about the game tonight,” said Bluthenthal, who made eight of 11 shots, including five of seven from the three-point line, in 37 minutes. “All day I was upbeat and smiling. I had a lot of energy, and was really just trying to fit in and have an impact.

“In the past, I had been settling for the jumpers for my first few shots. Tonight I tried to get some things around the basket, get some offensive rebounds and work my way out. I think it worked, and I’m going to have to do that a little more.”

Bluthenthal wasn’t the only standout. For a change, Bibby didn’t have to complain about only one or two Trojans showing up.

Brian Scalabrine (sporting a shaved head) had 21 points, including a big three-pointer in overtime that put USC back up by four after Oregon guard Anthony Norwood (16 points) made the Ducks’ only overtime basket, a three-pointer, to pull Oregon within 81-80 with 1:05 to play.

“This was the deepest we’ve dug as a team since Hawaii,” said Scalabrine, referring to the Trojans’ 70-67 victory over Brigham Young in December, when the Trojans overcame a 20-point second-half deficit. “Can I remember the last time I hit a three? Probably the year 2000.

“Did we save our season? Yeah. But every game now is a save-the-season game.”

Jeff Trepagnier, who also didn’t start, had 11 points and eight rebounds in 34 minutes. He also had a key defensive play, deflecting a pass off Norwood’s hands with 38 seconds to play, which, for all intents and purposes, snuffed out the Ducks’ last chance.

“Dave and I knew we wouldn’t start, but we didn’t want to put our heads down,” Trepagnier said. “We just came out and played.”

Trepagnier was also a catalyst for the Trojans big comeback in the final five minutes of regulation, tipping in a missed shot and making a twisting layup through several defenders.

“I thought I had to do something,” Trepagnier said.

Bluthenthal would do the rest.

“When you make Dave upset, he plays like a really good player,” Scalabrine said.

Said Bibby: “Those two guys were the difference tonight.”

The lineup changes Bibby had promised came in the form of Desmon Farmer and Nate Hair, replacing Trepagnier and Bluthenthal.

Hair played 10 minutes and didn’t score. Farmer had three points in three minutes.