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		<link>http://areyouwatchingthis.com</link>
		<description>RUWT? News for USC vs. Arizona State 3/14/2009</description>
		<language>en-us</language>
		<copyright>Copyright 2006-2007 areyouwatchingthis.com</copyright>
		<lastBuildDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:32:28 GMT</lastBuildDate>
		<pubDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:32:28 GMT</pubDate>
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				<title><![CDATA[Southern Cal rallies past Arizona State to win Pac-10]]></title>
				<description><![CDATA[LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- Southern California's defensive style is
man-to-man. The Trojans don't pressure full-court, and yet 
that's what earned them the school's first Pac-10 tournament 
championship.

Daniel Hackett hit the tying and go-ahead free throws with 42 
seconds remaining and USC held on for a 66-63 victory over No. 
23 Arizona State on Saturday to win the Pac-10 tournament 
championship.

Freshman DeMar DeRozan scored 25 points, Hackett added 19 and 
Dwight Lewis 13 for the sixth-seeded Trojans (21-12), who 
overcame a 15-point halftime deficit to become the lowest seed 
to win the tourney.

James Harden, the Pac-10 player of the year, missed a free 
throw, a layup and a 3-pointer in the final 50 seconds for the 
fourth-seeded Sun Devils (24-9). They were led by Jeff 
Pendergraph with 20 points and Derek Glasser with 16 in the 
school's first appearance in the title game.

A stunned Pendergraph couldn't describe his emotions afterward, 
saying, "It's a lot of stuff and I don't want to say something 
crazy."

The Trojans had been 0-3 in league tourney finals, losing to 
Oregon in 2003 and 2007 and to Arizona in 2002. The previous 
lowest-seeded team to win was Oregon six years ago. USC split 
with the Sun Devils during the regular season.

"We focused on our practice and preparation and we took it one 
game at a time," Hackett said. "It got us to a championship."

DeRozan was named the tournament's most outstanding player, and 
USC fans responded by chanting "One More Year!" to the rookie 
who may be headed to the NBA draft.

"He played like a man, not a freshman," Hackett said. "He came 
in with a goal in mind, to make something at this school."

Lewis hit a 3-pointer in front of USC's bench that left the 
Trojans trailing 63-62 with 1:01 remaining. Harden was called 
for an offensive foul and turnover at ASU's end, putting Hackett
at the line with 42 seconds left. He made both to give USC a 
64-63 lead, its first since the game's opening minutes.

Harden missed a layup with 19 seconds to go. Gibson got the 
block and the defensive rebound and was fouled by Glasser. 
Gibson made one of two free throws for a 65-63 lead.

"Taj just blocked my shot," Harden said. "They play a unique 
style of defense. They play man and they guard their man."

Harden missed a 3-pointer over Gibson with four seconds to play.
Harden finished with 10 points, well under his 21.1 average.

Gibson, the league's defensive player of the year, twice got the
better of Harden when the two faced off in the final 19 seconds.
First, Gibson blocked Harden's layup attempt, then he altered 
Harden's shot on the 3-point attempt.

"I was like, `Oh man, the rocker step is coming. Coach has faith
in you, don't let him down,'" Gibson said he told himself as 
Harden came at him. "I was able to get a lucky block and 
rebound."

The Trojans inbounded and Lewis was fouled. He missed the first 
and made the second for a 66-63 lead. Glasser's 3-pointer from 
the far left sideline was off the mark at the buzzer.

Hackett climbed on the scorer's table and pumped his arm to the 
cheers of USC's fans. Lewis carried a cooler of Gatorade onto 
the court, but was discouraged from dumping it.

USC turned up its defense to start the second half, pressing the
Sun Devils full-court and getting a couple of key steals by Taj 
Gibson. The Trojans opened on a 29-16 run, including 13 points 
by DeRozan and nine by Lewis, to close to 55-53 with 8:42 
remaining.

"We just told them to muck the game up and start trapping," USC 
coach Tim Floyd said. "The press got us more aggressive 
offensively."

During that stretch, the Trojans scored eight in a row, helped 
on one sequence with a block by Gibson and the defensive rebound
by Hackett, who passed to DeRozan for the basket and a foul.

"They came out and they certainly hit us between the eyes to 
start the second half with that flurry," ASU coach Herb Sendek 
said. "It led to some easy baskets for them and turned the 
momentum."

After getting beat inside in the first half, when the Sun Devils
owned a 14-6 edge in the paint, the Trojans drove to the basket 
in the final 20 minutes and it paid off with dunks by DeRozan, 
Lewis and Gibson. But USC was shaky from the line over the final
six minutes, going 6-of-10.

The Sun Devils shot 64 percent from 3-point range in the first 
half, with six of their last eight field goals coming from 
beyond the arc. Harden was scoreless with five assists when he 
hit back-to-back treys to end the half with the Sun Devils 
leading 39-24.

USC twice tied the game, the last time on Hackett's jumper with 
10:40 remaining. But then Ty Abbott launched the 3-point barrage
that put the Trojans behind by double-digits.

Coming off a 65-55 semifinal upset of No. 15 UCLA, the Trojans 
wanted the victory to earn the automatic NCAA tournament berth 
that goes with the title. Now they're guaranteed to receive 
their third invitation in coach Tim Floyd's fourth season.

"When they're taking every team from the Big East, you feel like
there's not that many spots left," he said. "We're very relieved
we're going to the NCAA tournament. I'm very proud of these guys
for not surrendering."

A year ago, USC lost in the first round to Kansas State.]]></description>
				<category><![CDATA[ncaab]]></category>
				<link>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/ncaab/news/91726-Southern-Cal-rallies-past-Arizona-State-to-win-Pac-10</link>
				<guid>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/ncaab/news/91726-Southern-Cal-rallies-past-Arizona-State-to-win-Pac-10</guid>
				<pubDate>Sun, 15 Mar 2009 01:42:49 GMT</pubDate>
			</item>
		
			<item>
				<title><![CDATA[Upstart USC faces Arizona State for Pac-10 crown]]></title>
				<description><![CDATA[By Jeff Mezydlo
Stats Senior Writer

USC (20-12) vs. (23) Arizona State (24-8), 6:00 p.m. EDT

TEMPE, Arizona (Ticker) -- Arizona State knows it has a spot in 
the NCAA  Tournament.  Southern California is not nearly as 
confident.

The surging Trojans need one last upset to join the No. 23 Sun 
Devils in the NCAA field as both try for their first Pac-10 
tournament title Saturday at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Paced by 24 points and nine rebounds from Pac-10 Player of the 
Year James Harden, fourth-seeded Arizona State (24-8) blew a 
21-point lead, but still beat 13th-ranked and No. 1 seed 
Washington 75-65 in Friday's first semifinal.

The Sun Devils, who were 3-10 in tournament play entering this 
season's event, are in the title game for the first time.

"I think it's important for us to stay in the moment, enjoy the 
moment and be ready for (Saturday)," said Arizona State coach 
Herb Sendek, whose team went 21-13 last season and missed the 
NCAA tournament.

USC (20-12), meanwhile, is exactly where it needs to be to have 
a chance at returning to the NCAA field.  The Trojans, who went 
9-9 in the league and beat Georgia Tech -- the last place team 
in the ACC -- for their only significant non-conference victory,
need to win this tournament to earn the automatic bid.

"We're standing real high right now," said freshman DeMar 
DeRozan, who had 21 points and 13 rebounds in USC's 65-55 
semifinal upset of 15th-ranked and second-seeded UCLA on Friday 
to reach the title game for the second time in three years.  
"We've got to come out (Saturday) focused and prepared."

The teams split their regular-season games. The 6-foot-7 DeRozan
had 22 points and eight rebounds in a 61-49 home win over the 
then-No. 16 Sun Devils on January 15 as Harden went 0-for-8 from
the field and finished with four points.

Arizona State won 65-53 over the Trojans at home on February 15 
in a game where USC coach Tim Floyd was given two technical 
fouls and ejected with 47.9 seconds remaining for arguing an 
offensive foul.  Floyd needed to be escorted off the floor by 
security guards and drew attention with his post-game comments.

"We cannot discuss those things," Floyd said after the game.  
"We don't have freedom of speech as coaches. Maybe (President 
Barack) Obama will change that rule, and we can talk."

That incident should spark some emotion for the Trojans in the 
rematch, but that might not be enough to overtake the Sun 
Devils. Arizona State is shooting 51.7 percent and averaging 
75.3 points in winning three straight over California, Arizona 
and Washington.

Though Harden was held to 13 points last month versus the 
Trojans, he has scored 51 on 53.3 percent shooting with 17 
rebounds through two tournament games.

Jeff Pendergraph had 18 points and Derek Glasser added 16 on 
Friday for the Sun Devils, who outscored Washington 17-5 in the 
final six minutes.

"We knew they were going to go on a run," Harden said. "All we 
had to do was keep our composure. We're conditioned to play 40 
minutes."

Glasser is averaging 8.3 points, but 15.5 against the Trojans 
this season.

As USC again tries to keep Harden in check, it should have some 
confidence after holding UCLA to a season-low 27.1 percent 
shooting.

The Trojans, who have won four in a row after losing six of 
seven, have three runner-up finishes in the Pac-10 tournament.]]></description>
				<category><![CDATA[ncaab]]></category>
				<link>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/ncaab/news/91683-Upstart-USC-faces-Arizona-State-for-Pac-10-crown</link>
				<guid>http://areyouwatchingthis.com/ncaab/news/91683-Upstart-USC-faces-Arizona-State-for-Pac-10-crown</guid>
				<pubDate>Sat, 14 Mar 2009 11:36:53 GMT</pubDate>
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