Pac-10: USC downs Oregon, completes sweep

Taj Gibson scored 18 points and Southern California held off a late rally from No. 9 Oregon for a 71-68 victory Saturday in Los Angeles to give the Trojans a season sweep of the Ducks for the first time in six years.

Gibson went 7 for 9 from the field and hit a free throw with 16.9 seconds to play to give USC a three-point lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

Aaron Brooks led Oregon with 16 points and nine rebounds, but the Pac-10’s leading scorer missed a chance for another game-breaking shot when his 3-pointer at the buzzer was off the mark.

Brooks had pulled down a rebound with 6 seconds to play after Oregon’s Chamberlain Oguchi missed a 3.

Last month the Trojans gave the Ducks their first loss – and only home loss – of the season, 84-82 in Eugene.

Oregon lost two in a row for the first time this season and lost for the third time on their four-game road trip.

The Ducks were coming off a 69-57 loss at No. 5 UCLA on Thursday.

Tajuan Porter scored 15 and Malik Hairston added 14 for Oregon.

(5) UCLA 82, Oregon State 35: At Los Angeles, Arron Afflalo scored 16 points, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute added 14 and the Bruins led all the way in beating the Beavers for their 17th consecutive home victory.

The Bruins maintained a one-game lead over Southern California in the conference standings going into Wednesday’s game between the crosstown rivals.

(23) Stanford 90, California 71: At Berkeley, Calif., Fred Washington scored a season-high 21 points to go with eight assists and six rebounds, leading the Cardinal past the Golden Bears.

The Cardinal avenged a four-point loss to the Golden Bears at Maples Pavilion last month, when Cal ended a 13-game losing streak on Stanford’s home floor dating nearly 14 years.

Jerome Randle scored 19 points and Theo Robertson added 11 and five rebounds for the Golden Bears.