USC slowed the pace, got the game where they wanted it, held down Derrick Rose and Chris Douglas-Roberts, had a chance to win the game at the free throw line, and, well, Memphis still won, 62-58.Up one point with about 10 seconds left, Memphis' Douglas-Roberts missed the front end of a one and one. On the rebound, USC's Daniel Hackett was fouled and went to the line for two. He made the first (tying the game), missed the second, and after Memphis missed an 18-footer at the buzzer, we had free basketball.
In OT, Rose, the sensational freshman, made three free throws as the No. 2 Tigers outscored the Trojans 8-4.
Rose and USC's stud frosh O.J. Mayo were on display in New York on National TV and both struggled. Rose scored just nine (he came in averaging 17) and Mayo had a game-high 16 points, but shot 6-19 from the floor.
While USC has been playing solid basketball, this goes down as another tough loss to a top-5 team. The Trojans lost Sunday to Kansas by four points. Losing close games is better obviously than getting stomped, but come seeding time for the NCAAs, close losses aren't anything compared to quality wins. And the Trojans just missed two huge victories.
