As UCLA's Markel Walker shot a pair of free throws with 13 seconds remaining and the Bruins 74-67 victory in hand, chants of "U-C-L-A" erupted from large contingencies of baby-blue clad fans on both sides of the Galen Center.

And there was no one there to defend the honor of the Women of Troy, USC athletics, the Galen Center or the university itself.

"It sucks to come out on your home court and get booed," junior point guard Ashley Corral said.

But that's exactly what happened when USC (13-8, 5-5) took to the court for pre-game warmups. Facing off against their crosstown rivals, the No. 10 team in the nation, in a nationally televised game, the Trojans managed only 59 more fans than when they played Arizona State last weekend.

The poor turnout didn't quell the heated contest on the court. UCLA (19-2, 9-1) battled off USC in a game that never had a double-digit lead.

The Women of Troy kept it close throughout but could never quite catch up to the Bruins, who won their fourth straight against USC.

The Bruins held USC's leading scorers, Briana Gilbreath and Corral, in check throughout the game and got a career-high 24 points from Darxia Morris.

Jasmine Dixon also continued her strong play against the Trojans, scoring a season-high 23 points and grabbing 14 rebounds, also a season high. Dixon had 20 points against USC earlier this season and has had eight or more rebounds in all five of her games against the Women of Troy.

-- BREAKING IT DOWN --

By the Numbers

• 1 - Sunday marked the first regular season win by the UCLA women at the Galen Center. USC had been 4-0. However, the Bruins did defeat the Women of Troy 59-53 last season during the Pac-10 tournament that was played at the Galen Center.
• 6-0 - UCLA had a pair of 6-0 runs in the first 10 minutes of the second half that allowed them to open up an early lead that USC could never catch.
• 74 - It had been 74 days since Stefanie Gilbreath had made a field goal. But she nailed a big 3-pointer in the second half that cut UCLA's lead to two with six and a half minutes remaining. Gilbreath had not played since December 5 due to a stress fracture in her right foot. It was her only basket of the game.
• 14 - With six steals Sunday, Briana Gilbreath had 14 steals in her last two games. She moved from 92nd in the country to 32nd in the country in steals per game boosting her average from 2.4 to 2.9.
• 11.8 - In the Trojans' last four losses, they have averaged only 11.8 turnovers per game. That would be good enough for second best in the nation this season. However, in their win over Arizona, the only win mixed in with the four losses, the Women of Troy turned the ball over 17 times.
• 7 - USC had seven offensive rebounds. UCLA's Jasmine Dixon had seven offensive rebounds.
• 4-0 - The Bruins are now 4-0 when they have four players score in double figures as they did against USC. On the other hand, USC is 7-0 when it has double-digit scoring from four players. On Sunday, the Women of Troy only had three players score more than 10 points. They are now 5-3 when three players are in double figures.

Top Player: Jacki Gemelos.

In the first half, USC's leading scorers, Briana Gilbreath and Ashley Corral, were struggling. The duo shot 2-of-14 from the field.

But USC managed to keep the game close and trailed by only four at halftime, thanks to a spark off the bench from Gemelos. The junior guard had 10 points, making 4-of-6 first half shots, including a pair of 3-pointers.

"I just found the open gaps a little bit and took my shot when it was open," Gemelos said.

In the second half, she knocked down another pair of 3-pointers to finish with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting. She also added two assists and a block.

Unsung Hero: Kari LaPlante.

LaPlante is known for her mild-mannered nature, which is sometimes to her detriment on the court. However, Sunday, she sent Jasmine Dixon to the floor writhing in pain after she completely ripped a rebound away from Dixon.

Dixon would be fine after leaving the game momentarily to have her shoulder examined, but it was good to see some aggression and strength from USC's 6-foot-5 senior center.

LaPlante is not one of USC's featured scoring option. In fact, she has yet to record double-digit scoring this season.

However, she had a strong all-around game against UCLA, scoring seven points while shooting 50 percent from the floor. She also grabbed seven strong rebounds and did a good job with her interior passing, dishing out three assists without a turnover.

"Step It Up:" Student section.

Seriously? I know it was Super Bowl Sunday. I understand that. However, there was plenty of time to catch the USC/UCLA game and the Super Bowl without missing any action in either.

But instead, USC students, you were outclassed by your crosstown counterparts.

The Bruins' band of roving misfits (c'mon your Yell Crew head "cheer" leader looks like he is 40 years old...can't you find a real student interested in the position, rather than a guy that creeps out me, and probably every freshman girl in your student section?) came across town and not only took over an entire section of the lower bowl. They chanted, cheered, chastised and yelled without opposition.

The senior citizen lifeblood USC fans and the players' parents aren't the ones that should be defending the Cardinal and Gold against the baby bears -- though it was humorous to see one elderly man give the UCLA students a single-fingered salute as he walked by their section, if only because old people doing ridiculous things is funny.

Defending your home turf (or court) is the responsibility of the Trojan students. Your starting point guard shouldn't have to feel like no matter where the team plays, it knows it's "never really going to have a fan advantage."

At Pauley Pavilion, the UCLA students chant "F*** SC." Do you think they would let boisterous Trojans come in and be louder? Definitely not.

Even for women's basketball, which rarely draws the same crowd as men's games, UCLA has a large crowd when USC comes across town. Though the Bruins have only had more than 1,000 people in attendance three other times this season, against USC, they had 6,675 fans.

At the Galen Center, only 59 more fans were in attendance than last Saturday against Arizona State. There were more than 59 UCLA fans sitting in one section alone, so there were actually less USC fans in attendance for a game against a nationally-ranked, crosstown rival than for a game against Arizona State.

Where They Stand:

Five games ago, the Women of Troy looked like a lock for the NCAA Tournament. However, their only win since then came against Arizona at home. They lost to Cal on the road, were lambasted by Stanford and have lost two close games in their last two home games.

USC still ranks No. 28 in the RPI with the 11th toughest strength of schedule in the country, according to RealTimeRPI.com. However, they have to do better than .500 in conference play where they currently sit.

Last season, the Women of Troy opened conference play 7-1 before losing five straight beginning late in January, including a loss to lowly Washington State. USC is in a very similar situation currently, but it can't continue its losing ways if it wants to make the NCAA Tournament.

The Trojans have to take care of business down the stretch, beating the teams they should beat, starting Thursday when they travel to Corvallis to take on Oregon State. Otherwise, they are going to be left upset once again this season when they watch the NCAA Tournament Selection Show.

"We can't leave that up to [the NCAA Tournament selection committee] because we came up short last year and I thought we did a great job last year," coach Michael Cooper said. "With eight games left, there's going to be some tough ones but we've got to get our 20 wins."

To reach Shotgun Spratling, click here, or follow him on Twitter @BlueWorkhorse.

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