Trojans hold on for win

Nothing comes easy against Miami of Ohio. Especially when you give the RedHawks multiple chances at the end of a game.

USC pulled out a 57-53 victory over Miami on Friday night at the Anaheim Convention Center, but only after the Trojans twice gave the RedHawks an opportunity to tie or take the lead in the final two minutes of their Anaheim Classic semifinal.

Miami’s first chance came after USC sophomore forward Taj Gibson was called for an over-the-back foul going for a rebound with the Trojans holding a 55-53 lead.

The RedHawks frittered away the opening when they failed to get a shot off in a timely fashion and turned the ball over on a shot-clock violation.

The Trojans had the ball with 54 seconds left and tried to whittle down the clock, but freshman guard O.J. Mayo threw a pass directly to Miami center Tyler Dierkers with about 22 seconds left.

Miami called a timeout and then swung the ball to junior guard Carl Richburg for an open three-pointer. The ball clanked off the rim and the Trojans rebounded, forcing the RedHawks to intentionally foul Mayo with three seconds to go.

Mayo made both free throws and USC (4-1) advanced to the championship game against No. 19 Southern Illinois (3-0) on Sunday night.

“We’ve got to clean up some late-game situations,” USC Coach Tim Floyd said. “We made a couple of mistakes late that we’d like to have back.”

Mayo scored 13 of his 21 points in the second half for the Trojans, who held the RedHawks (2-1) to 27.3% shooting in the last 20 minutes after they had shot 56% in the first half.

Senior forward Tim Pollitz scored 21 points and junior forward Michael Bramos had 12 for Miami, but they did most of their damage in the first half, with Pollitz scoring seven points and Bramos only one after intermission.

The Trojans took control on defense during a key stretch with about seven minutes left and the score tied. Redshirt freshman forward Kasey Cunningham stuck out his hand and stole a Miami pass, leading to a give-and-go fastbreak exchange with teammate Daniel Hackett that ended with a Cunningham dunk.

On Miami’s next possession, RedHawks guard Kenny Hayes drove into the lane and had his shot blocked by USC freshman forward Davon Jefferson. The play enlivened the Trojans contingent among the crowd of 2,177 and even prompted USC football Coach Pete Carroll to stand and applaud.

The Trojans also had difficulty scoring for long stretches. Stifling defense was nothing new for the RedHawks, who have held opponents under 70 points in 37 consecutive games, the nation’s longest active streak.

Things actually looked good for the Trojans in the early going. USC took a 14-9 lead on a putback by sophomore guard Dwight Lewis before Miami surged ahead with an 11-4 run.

The Trojans had trouble defending the small, quick RedHawks on the perimeter, and Miami capitalized by making five three-pointers in the first half.

Coming into the game, the Trojans had won three consecutive games following their season-opening loss to Mercer by fixing their leaky defense. USC held the Citadel, South Carolina and San Diego each to under 40% shooting after allowing Mercer to shoot 59.4%.

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ben.bolch@latimes.com

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UP NEXT FOR USC

Southern Illinois, 8 p.m. Sunday, Anaheim Convention Center, ESPN2--The Trojans advanced to the championship game of the Anaheim Classic to play the No. 19 Salukis (3-0), who defeated Mississippi State, 63-49, on Friday night. Senior forward Randal Falker scored 23 points and sophomore guard Joshua Bone had 15 for Southern Illinois, which pulled away from the Bulldogs in the second half.

-- Ben Bolch