USC STRATEGY BACKFIRES\Arizona State 69, USC 66.Byline: Gary Washburn Daily News Staff Writer Mental mistakes have diffused the greatest of teams with the most legendary of coaches. So what do you think happened to the USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. basketball team and interim coach Henry Bibby Charles Henry Bibby (born November 24, 1949 in Franklinton, North Carolina) is a former professional basketball player and current assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). on Thursday night? Arizona State was as inconsistent as the Trojans. But the Sun Devils' missed free throws proved less costly than Jaha Wilson's last-minute foul with four seconds left on the shot clock against Arizona State's worse foul shooter. Despite a 1-for-6 night from the line, Okeme Oziwo hit one important free throw, helping the Sun Devils
tr.v. frus·trat·ed, frus·trat·ing, frus·trates 1. a. To prevent from accomplishing a purpose or fulfilling a desire; thwart: Trojans at the Sports Arena. Arizona State (9-11, 4-7 in the Pac-10) was ahead 66-64 with 30 seconds left. USC forced the Sun Devils to pass to Oziwo at the 3-point line, and he proceeded to hold the ball over his head in confusion as the shot clock ticked down. But Wilson then raced over and fouled him. Oziwo's one free throw made it a 3-point difference. USC's Cameron Murray missed a game-tying 3 try at the buzzer. "I instructed the guys to foul," said Bibby, trying to take the blame. "Four seconds is important. The guy hadn't made his free throws all night." During the ensuing en·sue intr.v. en·sued, en·su·ing, en·sues 1. To follow as a consequence or result. See Synonyms at follow. 2. To take place subsequently. possession, Brandon Martin drove to the hoop instead of trying a 3-pointer. He hit both free throws to draw USC to within 67-66. But 81 percent foul shooter Jeremy Veal veal, flesh of a calf from two to three months old weighing usually less than 300 lb (135 kg). The locomotion of the veal calves is often restricted, and they are fed a real or synthetic milk that is high in protein and low in iron; this produces the desired hit both shots with 3.7 seconds left, setting up Murray's desperation miss. The loss capped a disappointing effort by the Trojans' backcourt back·court n. 1. Sports a. The part of a court between the service line and the base line in tennis and other net games. b. . Stais Boseman had just three points on 1-of-12 shooting. Murray, trying to regain some lost confidence, was 0 for 5, and Damion Dawson attempted just four shots. "It's just one of those times when the backcourt just didn't do it's job," said Martin, who had 19 points. "You can't blame any particular play, we made a lot of mental mistakes." The shabby backcourt effort spoiled a 21-point, 11-rebound effort by Wilson, and an outstanding defensive performance. ASU's Ron Riley swished a key 3-pointer with 1:03 left to give the Sun Devils a 66-63 lead. Riley's shot saved the game and kept coach Bill Frieder Bill Frieder was a 1964 BBA graduate of Michigan's business school and basketball coach at the University of Michigan (1981-1989) and Arizona State University (1989-1997). Frieder was fired by Michigan athletic director Bo Schembechler on the eve of the 1989 NCAA Men's Division I sane after Arizona State missed five consecutive foul shots in the final five minutes and 16 of 31 in the game. "This is something that we needed considering we didn't have a guy hit 2-2 from the free throw line," Frieder said. "This game was just like Arizona, we played USC better the second time around. Hopefully, we'll do better against UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX on Saturday." And this was a game the Trojans needed. Now 11-13 and 4-8 in the Pac-10, USC has to win five of its last six to finish with a winning record. And Arizona, off a bitter loss Thursday night at UCLA, comes to the Sports Arena in a must-win situation. The Trojans will be without center Avondre Jones, who sat out Thursday's game still on team suspension. Jones sat on the USC bench and could be back for next Thursday's game against UCLA. But that won't help USC on Saturday. "This is a game I thought we should have won and we didn't play well," Bibby said. "I just hope we can continue to stay together." |
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