Trojans Turn Into a Wrecking Crew in Final Two Games

Never underestimate the power of the mind.

With a powerful dose of confidence two days after stunning the No. 2 team in the country, USC took the court Saturday and crushed Arizona State, 117-71.

“We have a sweet taste in our mouth,” USC Coach Henry Bibby said. “Before we had a bitter taste. The win against Arizona gave us a big, big lift, a boost of confidence.”

Before 2,825 attending USC’s season finale at the Sports Arena, the Trojans were led by senior guard Gary Johnson, who scored a career-high 32 points, giving him 59 points in his final two games.

The Trojans’ lopsided victory also may have squashed Arizona State’s chances of receiving an NCAA tournament bid. The Sun Devils (18-13, 8-10) probably had an outside chance after losing to UCLA on Thursday but now a tournament spot seems unlikely.

“I told the team before the game that they were in a great position,” Sun Devil Coach Don Newman said. “We just didn’t get it done.”

“We weren’t really thinking about spoiling it for them,” said Johnson, who made his first four shots, two them three-pointers. “We wanted to play aggressively and go out on a good note.”

How unlikely was a USC sweep of the Arizona schools? USC had lost seven consecutive games before beating the Wildcats on Thursday, and the victory over the Sun Devils gave USC its first back-to-back wins in almost two months.

The Trojans (9-19, 5-13) made a season-high 15 of their 30 three-point shots and had a season-high 26 assists. They made 45 of their 77 field goals (58.4%), the first time in 23 games USC has shot better than 50%.

USC held Sun Devil guard Jeremy Veal, the Pac-10’s leading scorer with a 21.1 average, to four points. He missed all six of his shots. Bobby Lazor led the Sun Devils with 19 points.

Elias Ayuso could be the embodiment of the Trojans’ season. Struggling through a season-long shooting slump, Ayuso played well in the upset of Arizona, scoring 10 points. He scored 25 points against the Sun Devils on nine-of-14 shooting, including six of 11 on three-pointers.

“I never thought about my slump,” Ayuso said. “I know I’m good. I kept thinking that eventually the ball would go into the hole.”

Midway through the second half, the Trojans tore off another 25-7 run to go up 96-57, and it was garbage time after that. Seldom-used players such as Behzad Souferian and walk-on Shelby Jordan were sent in and even scored.

The Trojans began rejoicing with outlandish dunks and showy passes. The highlight was produced by freshman guard Jeff Trepagnier’s double roundhouse slam with 4:21 left.

The Trojans ended in a brilliant flash, but the season was still a stinging disappointment.

Looking to next season, Bibby has been successful in bringing a good crop of recruits, including Westchester High forward David Bluthenthal and junior college transfers Quincy Wilder and Brian Scalabrine.

“As far as we’re concerned, we’re already 2-0 next season,” Trepagnier said. “We got a lot of good guys coming in. This team will definitely be a team to watch out for next season.”