CAL OUTLASTS STUNNED TROJANS IN OVERTIME CAL 92, USC 91.

Byline: Scott Wolf Staff Writer

USC was three seconds from sitting alone atop the Pacific-10 Conference on Thursday night, but that was ample time for California guard Shantay Legans to spoil the Trojans' long-awaited return to the Sports Arena.

Legans made a 3-point shot with three seconds left in overtime to give Cal a 92-91 overtime upset of the No. 23-ranked Trojans in front of 7,982. It was USC's first game on its home court since Dec. 16.

The winning basket came after Cal guard A.J. Diggs, a walk-on from Long Beach Poly, stripped the ball from USC guard Brandon Granville and forced a jump ball with 14.6 seconds left. Cal was awarded possession to set up Legans' heroics.

The stunned Trojans were unable to get a shot off after inbounding the ball.

``I don't even know how to feel,'' said USC forward Sam Clancy, who had a game-high 26 points. ``We basically threw the game away. There's no way we should have lost. Stupid mistakes cost us the game. It's a terrible feeling.''

Cal (14-3, 5-2), the Pac-10's worst 3-point-shooting team at 29 percent, made a school-record 15 shots behind the arc. The Bears were 3 for 3 in overtime.

``I don't know how they made those shots,'' Clancy said. ``We should have taken an extra step out on defense. But we've got to bounce back because we can't afford to lose two games at home.''

The overtime was particularly lively - in one stretch USC and Cal made four consecutive 3-pointers. The Trojans were 11 for 20 on 3-point field goals.

``That's one of the better games I've witnessed,'' USC coach Henry Bibby said. ``It was like two heavyweights going toe-to-toe. But that's a tough loss for us. They've been the worst 3-point-shooting team in the Pac-10, so we went with the percentages on defense.''

USC (14-4, 6-2) remained tied for first place by virtue of Washington's 97-92 victory over Oregon (14-5, 6-2), but the Trojans blew a chance to gain sole possession at the top. Stanford and Cal are a half-game back.

``That would have been nice (to be alone in first) but that's not the case,'' Bibby said.

USC only had itself to blame.

The Trojans blew a six-point lead (77-71) in the final 1:44. The turning point was forward David Bluthenthal's errant pass picked off by Diggs, who drove for a layup with 45.6 seconds that cut USC's lead to 77-76.

Granville then drove to the basket and attempted a 4-foot leaner that bounced off the rim, but Errick Craven tipped the ball in to give USC a 79-76 lead with 10.6 seconds left.

But Cal guard Brian Wethers (24 points) took an inbounds pass and hit a turnaround 3-pointer with 4.6 seconds to tie the game 79-79. USC hurried upcourt and Craven missed a desperation 3-pointer as the horn sounded.

``This game was a real shootout,'' Cal coach Ben Braun said.

The Trojans also blew a 10-point advantage (64-54) in the final 10 minutes.

In regulation, USC received a timely boost from 6-foot-11 center Kostas Charissis, who had a season highs in points (eight) and rebounds (10) in 30 minutes. Charissis helped negate Cal's size advantage, as the Bears had four players who are 6-10 or taller.

Clancy, Granville and Bluthenthal carried the Trojans, combining for 65 points. But Cal negated the Trojans' seniors behind Wethers, Joe Shipp (20 points), Legans (13) and forward Amit Tamir (13).

It looked like a 3-point-shooting contest from the outset, which was surprising since USC ranked seventh and Cal 10th in long-range field-goal percentage. Cal made 8 of 15 while USC was 7 for 11 in the first half.

The Bears were 7 for 34 on 3-pointers in their past two games.

Bluthenthal made 5 of 6 3-point field goals in the first half, including a 55-footer at the buzzer that gave USC a 42-40 halftime advantage.

--Notes: USC junior point guard Robert Hutchinson, who averages 13.7 minutes in Pac-10 games, did not play Thursday. He was not injured. ... The crowd of 7,982 was USC's largest of the season aside from the UCLA game at the Forum. A crowd of at least 8,500 is expected for Saturday's game against No. 17-ranked Stanford.

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Photo:

Cal's Jamal Sampson, right, tries to wrestle the ball away from USC's Sam Clancy on Thursday night at the Sports Arena.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer