Southern Cal hits late 3, upsets 6th-seeded SMU in NCAAs

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — For the second straight NCAA Tournament game, Southern California overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half to win.

Elijah Stewart hit a late 3-pointer for No. 11 seed USC as the Trojans upset sixth-seeded SMU 66-65 on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

USC trailed SMU by 10 in the second half. The Trojans trailed Providence by 17 in the second half of their First Four game on Wednesday night before winning 75-71.

Apparently, they don't know how to quit.

"We just had to keep fighting back," Stewart said. "We've been in those positions before. So we're kind of seasoned to it. And you just can't stop. You just got to keep going."

Stewart had 22 points for the Trojans (26-9), including the game-deciding 3 with 37 seconds to play.

"We ran the play previously before, and I was open," Stewart said. "And then we had the media timeout. We discussed it. We ran the same play again, and I was open, and I just let muscle memory take place."

Bennie Boatright and Chimezie Metu each added 14 points for USC, which advanced to play third-seeded Baylor in the second round of the East region on Sunday.

SMU's Shake Milton missed a floater at the buzzer that would have won it for the Mustangs.

"There used to be a show on TV when I was little talking about the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat," SMU coach Tim Jankovich said. "I think it was Wide World of Sports. I can certainly relate to that show right now."

Stewart noticed that SMU wasn't sure what it was going to do in the final sequence.

"I noticed that two players were arguing about who was going to take the last shot," Stewart said. "Usually, when something like that happens, like whoever shoots it, it just messes with you. The floater was short, and I felt like if — like it could have went either way, honestly. I was just — I had my eyes closed."

Semi Ojeleye had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Sterling Brown had 17 points for SMU (30-5), which had won 16 straight. The Mustangs' last loss had been on Jan. 12.

SMU was in the NCAA Tournament after being banned from postseason play a year ago for multiple violations, including academic fraud and unethical conduct.

"Today is obviously an incredible heartbreak," Jankovich said. "If ever there was a team to deserve some great things, some more great things to happen, particularly this time of year, it was these guys."

BIG PICTURE

USC: When the Trojans play Baylor, it will be their third NCAA Tournament game in five days. But at least the Trojans won't have to travel. After the game against Providence in Dayton, Ohio, the team got to Tulsa at 3:30 a.m. Thursday.

SMU: Getting back to the NCAA Tournament was a big deal for the Mustangs, who qualified in 2015. SMU won the American Athletic Conference regular season and postseason titles.

STAT LINES

USC shot 58.3 percent in the second half and made 9 of 11 shots inside the 3-point line after the break. The Trojans shot 48 percent overall and made a remarkable 16 of 22 shots inside the arc.

SHORT ROTATION

SMU only used six players, and its bench did not score. USC got 47 minutes out of its reserves to 18 for SMU.

QUOTABLE

SMU's Ben Moore, who missed a free throw with 12 seconds left: "Right now, I got a big knot in my throat that I'm trying to ignore it. And I let a lot of people down in the locker room that I didn't want to with missing that free throw. But I'm glad we had a great season. I'm glad we did what we did this year."

UP NEXT:

USC: Will play Baylor Sunday in the second round.

Southern Cal rallies to beat Providence in First Four

By MITCH STACY

Associated Press

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Beaten by Providence by one point in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament last year, Southern Cal exacted revenge in a rematch Wednesday night.

Bennie Boatwright scored a career-high 24 points as the Trojans rallied from a 17-point deficit in the second half to beat Providence 75-71 in a First Four game.

"It does feel good getting payback from last year, because that was a tough loss," Boatwright said.

Southern Cal, the No. 11 seed, moves on to play No. 6 seed SMU in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Friday. It will be the second meeting of the season for the teams after USC prevailed 78-73 on Nov. 25. Southern Cal is 5-1 all-time against SMU.

After Providence (20-13) led by 15 points at halftime and went up by 17 to start the second half, Southern Cal (25-9) mounted a furious rally. The Trojans closed it to five points at the 10-minute mark, and went up 61-60 on a jumper by Chimezie Metu off a turnover with 6:46 left .

Metu hit both ends of a 1-and-1 to put Southern Cal up 71-64 with 1:23 remaining and kept Providence from getting momentum down the stretch.

"I think we just got out-toughed in the second half," Providence guard Jalen Lindsey said. "We weren't playing with the same passion we were in the first half, and it showed. And they executed their game plan and we kind of faltered back."

Jordan McLaughlin scored 18 points for Southern Cal, and Metu added 15 on 9-for-12 free throw shooting.

Emmitt Holt led Providence with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Lindsey and Rodney Bullock added 17 each.

The comeback was Southern Cal's 12th this season of at last 10 points, the most in the nation.

Providence outshot Southern Cal 49 percent to 42 percent, but the Trojans outscored them in the second half 46-27.

"I thought we got lazy defensively in the second half, and I was really shocked at that given the time and score of this game," Providence coach Ed Cooley said.

BIG PICTURE:

Providence: Had the game well in hand but went cold in the second half and let Southern Cal muscle back into it.

Southern Cal: An energetic second-half comeback gives the Trojans some buoyancy and momentum as they move into the field of 64. And they know they can beat SMU.

LOOKING TO TULSA

USC coach Andy Enfield saw enough of SMU in November to know the Trojans have their work cut out for them on Friday.

"They're a terrific basketball team," he said of the Mustangs, who have won 16 straight. "They have five guys in their starting lineup that are similar to Providence. They're big, they're long, they're very skilled."

McLaughlin said Southern Cal showed it belongs in the tournament.

"Our coaches, they have confidence in us, we have confidence in ourselves," he said. "And we know when we're playing like we did the second half that we're able to compete with anybody. And it's just a matter of us just bringing the energy and knocking down shots and just competing all the way to the end."

BLOWOUT ALERT

The game looked like a rout in the making at halftime. Providence took a 44-29 lead on the strength of a 15-0 run punctuated by two 3-pointers by Bullock and another from Lindsey, who had 15 points in the first half. The Friars were 8 for 15 from 3-point range in the first half.

Southern Cal had just three field goals in the last 11 minutes of the half, and went without one in the last 4 1/2 minutes of the frame with Providence ripping off a 12-3 run in that span.

The second-half comeback included two 8-0 runs by the Trojans.

UP NEXT:

Southern Cal: Plays 6th-seeded SMU in the first round of the East Regional in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Friday.