Oregon State
USC
Oregon St. Nips Southern Cal, 61-60
March 01, 2003 | Men's Basketball
March 1, 2003
CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP)- Philip Ricci had 15 points and Brian Jackson hit two free throws to clinch the victory as Oregon State defeated Southern California 61-60 Saturday.
With the win the Beavers (13-12, 6-10 Pac-10) are all alone in sixth-place in the conference. The Trojans (10-15, 5-11) drop to seventh place. The top eight teams advance to the Pac-10 tournament March 13-15 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Errick Craven led the Trojans with 15 points. Desmon Farmer and Gregg Guenther added 12.
The lead went back and forth in a slow and sloppy first half, leaving the Beavers with a 27-26 advantage into the break.
Craven hit a 3-pointer at 14:15 to give the Trojans the games biggest lead at 40-33. David Lucas six straight points got the Beavers to within a point at 42-41. And then Philip Ricci hit a 20-footer from the top of the key, giving Oregon State the lead.
The Beavers led 58-57 with 34 seconds left when Craven was called for an offensive foul. Jimmie Haywood hit one of two foul shots to make it 59-57.
Desmon Farmer drove into the lane, but Ricci stripped the ball and threw it cross-court to Jackson, who was fouled with 9.6 seconds to go. Jackson hit both free throws to give OSU a 61-57 lead. Farmer made a meaningless 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
The Trojans took 15 more shots than the Beavers, and shot just 35 percent for the game. USC out-rebounded Oregon State 44-37.
After the game, the Beavers honored seniors Ricci, Jackson, Haywood and Mike Cokley, making their last collegiate appearance at Gill Coliseum.
