In surely their most shaky win yet, the USC Men's Basketball squad needed a late barrage of free throws and layups to squeak over the visiting Bakersfield, 63-59, on Sunday night. Guard Byron Wesley led all scorers with 20 points, while freshman forward Nikola Jovanovic had 14 points and 10 rebounds for his first career double-double. The Trojans improve their record to 7-3, and improve to 6-0 this season at the Galen Center. 

The Trojans lulled through the game's first 35 minutes, and trailed 56-50 with 4:27 to go after CSUB's Issiah Grayson hit a three-pointer. Two straight layups by guard Byron Wesley, who led all scorers with 20 points, cut the deficit to two. The Trojans then hit six straight foul shots after a Bakersfield layup, and made enough free throws down the stretch to keep the upset-minded Roadrunners at bay. After CSUB missed a three-point attempt to tie the game with 3 seconds left, Omar Oraby hit one of two free throws to clinch the win.

Despite having 7-foot-2 center Omar Oraby, the Trojans were painfully outmuscled on the rebounding front. Bakersfield had 12 offensive rebounds in the opening half, and out-rebounded the Trojans 37-33 on the night. The scrappy Roadrunners pressed the Trojans at times, and forced 13 turnovers, including seven by point guard Pe'Shon Howard. Coming off a week interrupted by players missing practice for finals, USC was anything but a well-oiled machine. 

"When you look at our percentages, we're a very streaky shooting team," head coach Andy Enfield said. "Wen we're making shots, like we did against Xavier and some against Boston College, we're good. But those other times, we need to get to the foul line and make our free throws, like we did tonight." That foul line proved to be USC's saving grace. The Trojans went 30-of-46 from the charity stripe, including 9 of 12 in the final 2:25 to eke out the win. 

Still, in front of 2,468 fans, the Trojans proved they have a ways to go when it comes to consistency. They made just one three-point shot, and had a series of mental errors that included fumbling rebounds untouched, diving passes in the lane going straight into a CSUB player's hands, and an egregious missed one-hand tomahawk dunk by Julian Jacobs with 8:08 left and USC down five points that sent Enfield into a fury, immediately subbing the freshman guard out. 

Fortunately, the Trojans never let the game truly slip out of their grasp. The Roadrunners never pushed the lead beyond six points, shooting 36.1 percent from the field. USC led at halftime despite Wesley, the team's leading scorer, having just one point in the first 20 minutes. The Trojans went back and forth throughout the second half, getting enough Wesley drive-and-fouls and Jovanovic layups to stay within range. Add in some key defensive stops down the stretch, and the Trojans found the formula for victory just in time. 

"I don't think it's a step back at all," Wesley said on the narrow win. "Every team's going to face adversity. We came out and played poor in the first half, but we came out and found a way to win. Games like this are really important for our team."

The Trojans will need to get comfortable quickly, as the team going on the road to face Long Beach State on Thursday, then flies to the Midwest to take on Dayton on Saturday. As for the status of academically ineligible guard J.T. Terrell, the team's leading returning scorer, Enfield said "possibly" regarding a return for Thursday. USC's fall semester ends on Wednesday.

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