LOS ANGELES _ After USC scratched and clawed its way back from a deep deficit, the Trojans' Jonah Mathews stood at half court with 10 seconds remaining Saturday in Galen Center and a frantic Stanford inbound pass soaring in his direction.
The senior guard had already played a fearless role in USC's frenetic comeback _ he finished with 19 points _ and now, as he grabbed the floating pass, Mathews had a chance to keep his team alive for good. He intercepted the pass and dished to guard Elijah Weaver, who took a three-point shot that fell in, and was fouled on the play.
Weaver missed the free throw. But he came alive in overtime to help ice the game. He scored eight of USC's 13 points in the extra session and the Trojans completed an 82-78 comeback victory over the Cardinal.
It was the third consecutive Pac-12 Conference victory for the Trojans (15-3, 4-1) and moved them into a tie with Stanford (15-3, 4-1) atop the standings.
The outcome might have been impossible to believe after the game's first half, during which the Trojans struggled on offense, looked lax on defense and, in turn, dug themselves a 21-point hole.
After an 88-56 victory over California on Thursday night in which USC made 62% of its three-point shots, the Trojans missed all three of their three-point shots against the Cardinal before halftime and made only three of 12 in the second half.
Stanford, however, found its stroke early. The Cardinal came into the game as one of the best three-point-shooting teams in the nation, and the Trojans did little to alter that reputation early as Stanford made six of nine in the first half.
The Trojans clamped down on defense in the second half and the offense figured out things. Stanford shot 35% in the second half after shooting 65% in the first half.
Trojans freshman Onyeka Okongwu took matters into his hands underneath, breaking out of a brief funk. He finished with 22 points and nine rebounds as Stanford struggled to control him in the paint.
Oscar da Silva scored 21 points, Spencer Jones had 18 and Tyrell Terry had 16 for the Cardinal.
The Trojans won for the ninth time in their last 10 games. The Cardinal lost for only the second time in their last 10.
Weaver, who was quiet through most of the game, finished with 13 points.
