Feb. 1, 2001
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
STANFORD, Calif. - Casey Jacobsen touched the bloody scratches on hisarm and winced. Mike McDonald, exhausted and sleepy-eyed, used one hand tosupport his head.
Their conditions weren't serious, however. They were proof that thetop-ranked Cardinal survived their first big scare of the Pac-10 season thehard way.
Jacobsen scored 22 points and McDonald hit the last of his six 3-pointerswith 50 seconds left as the Cardinal rallied from a halftime deficit to beatNo. 21 Southern California 77-71 on Thursday night.
"They beat us up. They fouled me every time I was down the court,"Jacobsen said. "I've got scratches all over me. Two separate times I wentflying into the bench. I've never done that in my career."
Jason Collins had 20 points and six rebounds as Stanford (20-0, 8-0) keptalive its school-record winning streak, even though the Cardinal didn't takethe lead for good until 6:13 remained.
Southern California pounded on Stanford with defense and got plenty oftimely offense, but the Cardinal's balanced shooting finally was too much foryet another opponent. Stanford ended on a 20-11 run.
"We just had to gut this one out the hard way," Stanford coach MikeMontgomery said. "I mean, I don't know how we could have played any better.They had an answer for just about everything we did."
Brian Scalabrine scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half as thefired-up Trojans never allowed Stanford to pull away. Southern California ledby four with seven minutes left, but consecutive dramatic 3-pointers byJacobsen and McDonald turned the game around.
"Staying with them for most of the game was nice, but we really wanted towin, so it was a disappointment," Scalabrine said. "We just have to bestronger than they are next time."
Jacobsen, held in check by 5-foot-9 Brandon Granville during the first half,scored 18 points in the second half. Collins scored six straight points duringa critical late-game stretch, while his twin brother Jarron hit two clinchingfree throws with 13 seconds left.
"We were there to win this game," said Trojans coach Henry Bibby, who wasfuming after the shot clock failed to start on a late Stanford inbounds playwhich ended in a 3-pointer by Jacobsen.
"We were right in it until the end. Our guys did a great job against thebest team in the country."
Southern California (15-5, 5-3), the first ranked team to visit MaplesPavilion this season, was looking for its first win over a top-ranked teamsince March 6, 1970. In a game that wasn't broadcast on television in LosAngeles or anywhere outside the Bay Area, the Trojans came close to pulling ahuge upset.
"We had to shoot 50 percent from the 3-point arc. They made us shoot 50percent from the field, and we still only won by six at home," Montgomerysaid. "That tells you how good USC is. They made a concerted effort to stopCasey, and that left Mike open a few times, and he took advantage."
David Bluthenthal and Sam Clancy scored 15 points apiece for the Trojans,who lost by 43 points at Maples last season. They led by seven midway throughthe first half and were up 34-31 at halftime thanks to 6-of-7 shooting on3-pointers.
The Trojans also got a near-perfect half from Granville, who hit all threeof his shots - including two 3-pointers - and had five assists in addition tohis defensive contributions. In the second half, however, he managed just fourpoints against McDonald's defense.
The key to the Cardinal's victory was McDonald, even though the conferenceleader in assist-to-turnover ratio had just two assists and three turnovers.Dared to shoot by the Trojans, McDonald hit six of his nine 3-point attempts -all seemingly coming whenever the Trojans threatened to open a large lead.
Southern California's conference-best defense was in top form against theCardinal, and Granville led the way. He's 9 inches shorter than the 6-foot-6Jacobsen, but his relentless defense on Stanford's leading scorer kept theTrojans ahead early.
Jacobsen didn't get a shot until 6 1/2 minutes in, and he didn't score until alayup with 10:55 left in the first half. Granville didn't guard Jacobsen asmuch in the second half, but even with 2:30 left, he sent a message byundercutting Jacobsen as both players dove for a loose ball.
The Cardinal scored on their first seven possessions of the second halfwhile making an 18-10 run. The Trojans replied with scoring from Scalabrine,who had foul trouble in the first half but went 7-of-12 from the field in thesecond.
Duke was the only other team to lead Stanford at halftime this season.