USC Rally Falters in 87-73 Loss

Say this much for the USC Trojans: They fought on.

Playing their first game without Gabe Pruitt, their second-leading scorer, the Trojans trailed Washington by 27 points midway through the second half and appeared on the verge of a historic defeat.

Suddenly their shots started falling and their defensive intensity picked up, and a game that appeared long lost was competitive again.

The No. 21 Huskies eventually pulled out an 87-73 victory Thursday night at Bank of America Arena, but USC made things interesting with a late push after getting pushed around in the paint by another Pacific 10 Conference rival.

“Our guys had a tremendous chance to lay down and they played every possession,” said Trojan Coach Tim Floyd, whose team was outrebounded by 14. “I was really pleased that our guys tried to fight through until the end.”

Sophomore swingman Nick Young’s two free throws with 2 minutes 58 seconds left capped a 15-2 run by the Trojans that made the score 79-70. A three-pointer by Washington guard Brandon Roy and two free throws by Ryan Appleby restored order for the Huskies, who ended a three-game losing streak.

Pruitt, seated on the USC bench in black pants and a cardinal-colored polo shirt, could only watch with a pained expression after sustaining a fracture in his left knee Monday that might sideline the sophomore shooting guard for the rest of the season.

“I felt they fought hard at the end, but it was real tough watching that game,” Pruitt said. “I really felt for the guys.”

USC, 15-8 overall and 6-6 in the Pac-10, dropped from a tie with Arizona for fourth in the conference to sixth after losing its second consecutive game.

The Trojans seemed lost during the first 30 minutes without their top three-point shooter, who was averaging 17.0 points and was among the Pac-10 leaders in steals. USC missed its first nine shots from the field, going 9:48 before junior guard Lodrick Stewart ended the drought with a fadeaway jumper.

Young scored 28 points and Stewart had 16, but no one else stepped up to help fill the void created by Pruitt’s absence until it was too late.

Reserve guard Dwayne Shackleford scored all his career-high 15 points in the second half after the game’s outcome had already been decided.

“I didn’t have nobody out there with me, it seemed like,” said Young, who scored 17 points in the second half. “It was kind of sad out there on the court.”

Floyd tried a variety of different lineups and even inserted seldom-used reserves Collin Robinson, Greg Gaudino and Reed Doucette. Robinson flubbed his audition by missing three of four shots and committing a turnover on a palming call.

The Trojans were completely out of sync on offense in the first half, often dribbling the ball around the perimeter until the shot clock wound down and then forcing shots. Young had to throw up a 40-footer on one possession after finding himself near half-court with the shot clock about to expire, and Sead Odzic was still dribbling when the clock went off later in the half.

“It’s going to be a learning experience these next couple of games without one of our star players,” Stewart said.

Odzic, who replaced Pruitt in the starting lineup, made one of seven shots and finished with four points in 21 minutes.

Roy had 25 points on 10-for-15 shooting and was one of five players who scored in double figures for Washington (17-5, 6-5), which defeated USC for the fifth consecutive time.

Afterward, Pruitt, expected to be out until at least the Pac-10 conference tournament, left a glimmer of hope for an earlier return. He had already discarded his crutches and said the pain in his knee had completely subsided.

Pruitt said he would try to see a doctor Tuesday for another examination.

“Hopefully,” Pruitt said, “it will change his opinion.”