USC topples Arizona

No. 11 Wildcats stumble, 80-73

? Nick Young had 30 points and eight rebounds, and Southern California beat No. 11 Arizona, 80-73, on Thursday night, handing the Wildcats their second consecutive loss and third in four games.

Arizona lost to Washington State last week to snap a 12-game winning streak, and lost to then-No. 15 Oregon on Sunday.

The Trojans (14-5, 4-2 Pac-10) came back from a last-second loss on Saturday to then-No. 4 UCLA to beat their fourth ranked opponent of the season.

They have beaten Arizona (13-4, 4-3) in seven of 11 meetings in Los Angeles.

Young went 13-for-19 from the field, throwing fakes, tossing up fallaways and yanking down rebounds at key moments throughout the game.

Lodrick Stewart had 18 points, and Gabe Pruitt scored 16 for the Trojans.

Mustafa Shakur and Marcus Williams led Arizona with 19 points apiece. Both had eight rebounds. Ivan Radenovic added 15 points and 10 rebounds.

Trailing by two, USC went on a 15-3 run early in the second half to take a lead it wouldn’t give up. Young scored six points during the run, including a dunk that made it 54-44 with 10:50 remaining.

Arizona crept back, pulling within two after a three-point play from Ivan Radenovic, but a three-pointer from Keith Wilkinson and Young’s jumper gave USC a 71-64 lead with 3:20 to go.

Young then got a goaltending call on a bad miss to put the Trojans up 73-67, and made two free throws in the final minute to put USC up 75-69.

Southern California's RouSean Cromwell, left, draws a charge from Arizona's Marcus Williams. USC won, 80-73, on Thursday night in Los Angeles.

USC’s Taj Gibson missed three of four free throws in the final minute that kept the crowd nervous, but Gabe Pruitt made a pair with 16 seconds remaining to seal the win for the Trojans.

The Trojans held an Arizona team averaging 51.2 percent from the field to just 38.3 percent. USC shot 53.3 percent.

No. 3 UCLA 60, Arizona State 50

Los Angeles – Darren Collison scored 16 points to help No. 3 UCLA rally in the second half for a win over Arizona State and remain tied atop the Pac-10.

Arron Afflalo added 13 points, and Josh Shipp had 12 points after returning from a hamstring tear in time to outduel his little brother, Jerren, who had eight points for the Sun Devils.

UCLA (16-1, 5-1) is tied for first with No. 9 Oregon, a 66-59 winner over Stanford on Thursday.

No. 9 Oregon 66, Stanford 59

Eugene, Ore. – Aaron Brooks recorded 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 9 Oregon. Tajuan Porter added 15 points and Bryce Taylor scored 14 for the Ducks (17-1, 5-1), who are off to their best start in 80 years.

No. 14 Duke 62, Wake Forest 40

Durham, N.C. – Greg Paulus scored 17 points, and Josh McRoberts had 11 points to lead Duke. The Blue Devils (15-3, 2-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) have won two straight since consecutive league losses to Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech.

No. 15 Nevada 86, Fresno State 75

Reno, Nev. – Marcelus Kemp scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half, and Nick Fazekas added 20 points and 10 rebounds to help No. 15 Nevada win its 10th in a row.