Andrej Jakimovski and reserve Isaiah Watts each scored 18 points Thursday night and No. 19 Washington State rallied down the stretch to stop Southern California 75-72 in Pullman, Wash.
The Cougars (22-7, 13-5 Pac-12) didn’t take their first lead until Watts drained a 3-pointer with 2:35 left to make it 68-67. Jaylen Wells gave them the lead for good on a short jumper with 1:58 left, then drilled a 3-pointer at the 1:18 mark for a 73-69 lead.
But Washington State couldn’t quite put the game away. Wells missed two foul shots with 23 seconds remaining, enabling the Trojans (11-17, 5-12) to have a chance to tie. However, Boogie Ellis and Kobe Johnson each missed 3-point attempts in the final six seconds, allowing the Cougars to pull within a half-game of first-place Arizona.
Myles Rice finished with 16 points and eight assists for Washington State, while Wells added 13 points. The Cougars drained 59.1 percent from the field in the second half, including 5 of 10 from 3-point range. They were 10 of 20 from beyond the arc for the night.
Isaiah Collier scored a game-high 24 points for USC.
Washington State entered the night as the team with the Top 25 ranking and the chance at a conference title, but it was USC that looked like the better team, especially in the first half when it looked like a squad that was predicted in preseason to contend for a Pac-12 crown.
The Trojans scored the first six points and never trailed in the half. Collier was brilliant with 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting, enabling his team to make 55.2 percent of their field goals, and the defense forced nine turnovers while holding the Cougars to 43.3 percent shooting.
But Washington State worked its way back into the game after Vincent Iwuchukwu made a free throw at the 1:35 mark to put USC ahead by 12. The Cougars scored the last eight points, using a Rice layup with a second left to close within 39-35 at halftime.
–Field Level Media
