Pac-12 men: 12th-seeded USC surprises Arizona State

LAS VEGAS – Southern California found itself trailing by 14 with 9 minutes left. No way was a young, inexperienced team that had a history of losing close games going to come back.

Instead of folding, as everyone might have expected, the Trojans dug down for a comeback victory and earned another shot at their biggest rival.

Elijah Stewart scored 27 points and hit two free throws with 3.4 seconds left after a big block by Nikola Jovanovic, helping Southern California rally for a 67-64 win over Arizona State in the Pac-12 tournament on Wednesday.

“We’ve lost so many close games down the stretch, so it’s nice to win one,” USC coach Andy Enfield said. “I’m proud of our effort to come back, take the lead and hold on to it.”

No. 5 seed Arizona State (17-15) was in control most of the way, leading by double digits well into the second half.

Behind Stewart and a zone defense that befuddled the Sun Devils, the Trojans fought their way back, setting up a frenetic finish.

USC (12-19), the tournament’s 12th seed, went on a big run with about 5 minutes left and kept making big plays.

The Trojans led by three with a minute left, when Arizona State’s Shaquielle McKissic scored on a hard drive with 53 seconds left. Arizona State grabbed two offensive rebounds on its next possession to earn a shot at a game-winner, but Jovanovic swooped across the lane and swatted McKissic’s shot attempt.

Stewart calmly hit two free throws and McKissic’s last-ditch 3-pointer bounced off the back of the rim to send USC into the quarterfinals against UCLA on Thursday.

Stewart hit 6 of 9 from 3-point range and Julian Jacobs added 12 points for the Trojans, who closed the game on a 21-4 run.

“We really just were ultra-focused and remained poised,” Jacobs said.

McKissic had 16 points and nine rebounds in his final game with Arizona State.

Stanford 71, Washington 69: Chasson Randle made up for an off night by burying a 3-pointer with 3 seconds remaining to lift the Cardinal (19-12) over the Huskies (16-15) in a first-round game.

Randle finished with 10 points on 3-of-11 shooting. Stefan Nastic led Stanford with 21 points, while Anthony Brown scored 16. Reid Travis came off the bench to score 14 with six rebounds for Stanford.

Andrew Andrews topped Washington with a game-high 22 points. Nigel Williams-Goss was the only other Husky to score in double figures. He finished with 16 points and seven assists.

Colorado 78, Oregon State 71: Josh Scott had 16 points and 14 rebounds, Askia Booker added 20 points and the Buffaloes (15-16) pulled away for a victory over the Beavers (17-14) in a first-round tilt.

Booker hit three 3-pointers during a key run midway through the second half and 9 of 10 free throws overall. Scott made 4 of 8 shots and all eight of his free throws.

Tre’Shaun Fletcher added 12 points for 10th-seeded Colorado, which moves on to face second-seeded Oregon in today’s quarterfinals.