Endgame was theater of the absurd for USC
USC BASKETBALL REPORT
Trojans had a chance to beat UCLA despite their lack of depth and off nights by Mayo and Jefferson, until things went from bad to worse.
Footage of the last 6 1/2 minutes of Sunday's crosstown rivalry game probably wouldn't be considered Oscar-worthy short-film material by anyone in USC's renowned School of Cinematic Arts, even though it managed to intertwine elements of drama, comedy and horror.
The drama: Despite a shortened bench and an awful night by freshmen O.J. Mayo and Davon Jefferson, the Trojans were still very much alive when sophomore Dwight Lewis made two free throws to pull USC to within four, at 46-42, with 6 minutes 36 seconds remaining.
The comedy: UCLA guard Russell Westbrook hounded USC counterpart Mayo into a comedy of errors over the final six minutes, though Mayo said most of the miscues were of his own doing.
USC basketball: An article in Tuesday's Sports section looking back at Sunday's loss to UCLA said USC's Dwight Lewis made two free throws to pull the Trojans to within four points at 46-42. Taj Gibson made those free throws.
The horror: Besides the black USC uniforms with red trim, there was the realization following the Trojans' 56-46 defeat that they could need to win at least three of their final six regular-season games to secure an NCAA tournament berth -- no sure thing with sophomore guard Daniel Hackett sidelined indefinitely with a stress fracture in his lower back.
"As long as we keep playing defense like that, we'll be OK," Hackett said after watching his teammates hold the Bruins to 29.6% shooting in the second half and 33.9% for the game.
With UCLA shots continually bouncing off the rim or missing it altogether, USC had multiple chances to cut into a six-point deficit over the final six minutes after a layup by Bruins forward Luc Richard Mbah a Moute made it 48-42.
But one Trojans possession ended when a Mayo three-point attempt rolled out. Another ended when a Mayo entry pass intended for Jefferson was intercepted. And a third ended when a Mayo three-point try early in the shot clock missed.
"We had many opportunities, we just turned the ball over too much and I didn't step up when my teammates needed me," said Mayo, who finished with a career-worst 10 turnovers and a career-low four points on two-for-eight shooting.
Freshman Kevin Love extended UCLA's lead to 50-42 with 2:36 remaining when he put back his own miss, but Jefferson had a chance to get the points back when he was fouled only 13 seconds later.
Jefferson missed both free-throw attempts, leading to a groan from the capacity crowd of 10,258 on the second miss.
Yet, the Bruins couldn't capitalize when they missed two shots at their end of the court and the Trojans got the ball back -- only to have Mayo called for traveling on a drive to the basket.
