USC
6-6, 1-1
California
9-5, 0-2
USC Women Charge Past Cal 74-54
December 31, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 31, 2011
LOS ANGELES, CALIF. - The USC women's basketball team posted its biggest win over California since 2005 with today's 74-54 Pac-12 victory over the visiting Bears. After Cal tightened up the game in the early goings of the second half, USC settled in a saw Christina Marinacci get to a career-high 23 points on the day, joined by Cassie Harberts with 23 points to go with nine rebounds to lead the Trojan charge to victory. USC improves to 6-6 overall and takes a 1-1 start to Pac-12 play, while Cal goes to 9-5, 0-2.
Marinacci and Harberts were joined in doubles figures by Ashley Corral with 13 points, including four 3-pointers in the first half to give USC an early lift. Cal had Brittany Boyd in the lead with 14 points, with 11 from Layshia Clarendon and 10 from Reshanda Gray. The USC defense held the Bears to a 27-percent shooting effort from the floor, while the Trojans shot at a 44-percent clip. Cal finished just ahead on the boards, 44-40, led by 12 rebounds from Gennifer Brandon.
Ashley Corral was 4-for-4 from 3-point land to help lead a Trojan charge to a 16-point advantage by the midway point of the first half. But Cal began to convert down low and cut the lead to two in the final minute as USC struggled through four minutes without a score from the floor. USC would cling to a 32-29 lead at halftime on 41 percent shooting to Cal's upgraded 32 percent, which included 20 points in the paint.
Cal would sneak into a 33-32 lead early in the second half, and later locked it 35-35 at 17:16 before USC peeled ahead with a 22-3 run to take a 57-38 lead capped by a three-point play from Ariya Crook with 9:15 to go. Meanwhile, Christina Marinacci had worked her way to a career-high 17 points during the run, in which the Trojans allowed just three free throws to fall from the Bears. Cal nailed a three to stop its scoring slump at the 9-minute mark, and it was later a 12-point game with 5 to go. Cassie Harberts dumped in six straight free throws next for the Trojans after a Cal flagrant foul and two more trips to the line to put USC ahead 68-51 with 4 minutes to go. Just when you thought it would be only free throws falling in the final stretch, Marinacci plugged in her 23rd points of the night on a jumper, and Harberts joined her with a putback that made 74-54 Trojans with 40 ticks to go.
USC now hits the road for a trip to the Arizona schools. The Trojans will visit Arizona State in a 6:30 p.m. MT game on Thursday (Jan. 5) before heading to play at Arizona at 2 p.m. MT on Saturday (Jan. 7).
