BIBBY BOUNCED, RETURNS USC COACH FUMES EN ROUTE TO VICTORY USC 80, ASU 68.

Byline: Scott Wolf Staff Writer

USC coach Henry Bibby has feuded with Pacific-10 Conference officials all season, but Thursday night he finally had reason to be upset.

In a bizarre scene at the Sports Arena, Bibby was ejected in the second half of the Trojans' 80-68 victory over Arizona State, then allowed back on the court less than five minutes later because the game officials misinterpreted the rule concerning technical fouls and ejections.

It all obscured the fact that USC (17-6, 7-4) narrowly remained on track for an NCAA Tournament berth, and left many in the crowd in a state of confusion.

Here's what happened:

Bibby received a technical foul with 1:31 left in the first half from referee Richie Ballesteros. With 19:02 left in the game, USC assistant coach Dave Miller was called for a technical by referee Jim Giron.

At that point, the officials ejected Bibby from the game and he was escorted to the locker room. But with 14:44 remaining, Bibby was brought back onto the court. The officials determined Bibby could be ejected only if two technicals were called directly against him.

``I've never seen anything like this happen in my life. I thought it was the biggest travesty in basketball,'' Bibby said. ``(Ballesteros) couldn't explain what was going on. He was adamant about throwing me out of the game.''

Said Ballesteros: ``When we ejected Bibby, we misapplied the rule. We ejected him by mistake. When we realized our mistake, we were waiting for the first dead-ball situation to correct it.''

To make things even more dramatic, Bibby told the officials during the game he was playing under protest, although a Pac-10 observer said there was no policy to accommodate such a request.

The incident is sure to fuel Bibby's frustration with conference officials, whom he has repeatedly criticized this season.

The Pac-10 already sent Bibby a letter of reprimand in December over his public comments concerning the officiating.

And, temporarily, it was the second time Bibby was ejected from a game this season. He was also thrown out of USC's 70-67 victory over Brigham Young on Dec. 23 in the Pearl Harbor Classic.

That ejection came at the hands of another Pac-10 referee - Charlie Range.

None of the technicals called Thursday night were over particularly emotional plays.

After Jeff Trepagnier was fouled by Awvee Storey in the first half, Ballesteros nearly gave Bibby a technical, because he thought an intentional foul should be called.

But less than two minutes later, Ballesteros did call a technical on Bibby over an apparent comment the coach made from the sideline.

Then, just 58 seconds into the second half, Bibby was ejected after Giron called a technical on assistant coach Dave Miller for another apparent comment following a missed layup by Trepagnier.

It was at this point that the officials informed Bibby he had to leave the game. Miller and assistant coach Silvey Dominguez were left to guide the Trojans.

Bibby's return - to loud applause from the crowd - sparked the Trojans, who trailed 45-44 when he returned, but went on a 14-4 run to take a 58-49 lead they never relinquished.

The big difference was forward David Bluthenthal, whom Bibby considered benching during the week and replacing with freshman Desmon Farmer. But Bluthenthal started and scored 13 points in the first half.

His two 3-pointers also fueled USC's run after Bibby returned in the second half, and Bluthenthal finished with 23 points.

In one respect, the Trojans played much differently than in their loss to UCLA last week. Unlike that contest, in which they trailed for nearly 30 minutes, the Trojans demonstrated how to blow a lead in the first half.

USC led by as many as 15 points before nearly the entire advantage disappear by halftime.

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Photo: Arizona State forward Awvee Storey drives around USC guard Desmon Farmer in the first half at the Sports Arena.

Kim D. Johnson/Associated Press