USC, UCLA Held at Bay

The game plan seemed to make sense.

California was the worst three-point shooting team in the Pacific 10 Conference, so USC was going to let the Golden Bears bomb away Thursday night.

“We were going with the percentages,” USC Coach Henry Bibby said.

The percentages did not pan out.

Cal rode a school-record wave of three-point baskets to take the No. 23-ranked Trojans to overtime and beat them on one last three-pointer with two seconds to play, 92-91, stunning the crowd of 7,982 at the Sports Arena. The defeat left USC (14-4) tied with Oregon atop the Pac-10 at 6-2. Cal is 5-2, 14-3.

With two seconds remaining in overtime, and the Trojans nursing a 91-89 lead, Cal junior point guard Shantay Legans heaved up a 23-footer from the left wing that found nothing but net.

USC couldn’t get off a shot before time expired, completing a Trojan collapse. They squandered a 10-point lead with 10 minutes to play in regulation and a four-point advantage with 37.1 seconds remaining in overtime.

“This just feels terrible,” said USC senior forward Sam Clancy, who led all scorers with 26 points and had 11 rebounds, his fourth straight double-double and league-leading 10th of the season.

“I don’t even know how to feel. We got stung.”

Cal’s winning play was made possible seconds earlier.

After USC point guard Brandon Granville converted a pair of free throws with 37.1 seconds to play in overtime to give the Trojans a seemingly safe 91-87 lead, the 5-foot-10 Legans drove the lane for an easy layup.

With USC trying to kill the clock, Granville was trapped along the sideline at midcourt and the ball was stripped by A.J. Diggs. As they both fell to the floor, a held ball was called. The possession arrow pointed to California.

“We were going to play keep-away but Brandon got caught in a corner and I think he slipped,” Bibby said. “That’s basketball. It’s tough, a tough loss for us.”

Before Thursday, Cal was making a league-worst 29.6% of its three-point attempts.

Against USC, the Golden Bears set a school record by making 15 three-pointers. They converted 53.6% (15 of 28, including three of three in overtime) from beyond the arc. The 15 three-pointers also tied a record for a USC opponent.

The Golden Bears sent the game into overtime when junior guard Brian Wethers made a turnaround three-pointer from the right wing with 4.6 seconds to play, tying the score, 79-79. Bibby said USC was supposed to foul on the play, before a shot was attempted.

USC freshman guard Errick Craven missed a runner as time expired. Trojan forward David Bluthenthal scored 20 points, tying a career high with six three-pointers. Granville had 19 points and six assists but committed three turnovers.

Junior center Kostas Charissis played a season-high 30 minutes and had a career-high 10 rebounds.

Wethers, one of five Cal players to score in double figures, came off the bench to lead the Golden Bears with 24 points.

USC made a dramatic three-point basket to close out the half.

With 1.4 seconds remaining, Desmon Farmer inbounded a bounce pass toward the right sideline to Bluthenthal, who took one dribble and heaved a two-handed shot from 55 feet that swished for a three-pointer, giving the Trojans a 42-40 lead at the half.

Cal was determined to get 6-foot-11 freshman center Jamal Sampson involved in the second half. After being held scoreless in the first half, Sampson, who grew up in Inglewood, scored the Golden Bears’ first seven points of the second half to give them a 47-46 lead at the 16:55 mark.

But the Trojans embarked on an 18-7 run over the next six-plus minutes to go up by a game-high 10-points, 64-54.

Cal chipped away as USC had only two field goals over the final 10 minutes of regulation, setting up the dramatic finish.

“Whenever USC hit a big shot at the end, we would respond,” Cal Coach Ben Braun said. “USC kept hitting and every time you thought they had inserted the dagger, we responded. Every time USC appeared to get momentum, we bounced back.”

Said Bibby: “It was like two heavyweights going toe-to-toe. Something had to give.”