On an afternoon where most of who's who in Los Angeles was focused on the evening's Grammy Awards, the Trojans squandered an opportunity to change their season's chorus, falling 79-71 to the visiting Stanford Cardinal in overtime.

After rallying from seven down with 3:54 to go to force the extra period, a pair of three-pointers in overtime helped Stanford jump out to a 71-64 advantage in overtime. The Trojans answered with a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to five, but were unable to make up any more ground as the Cardinal sank six straight free throws down the stretch.

The Trojans fall to 10-10 (1-6 in Pac-12 play), while Stanford improves to 13-6 (4-3). 

"We played very hard today, and had a chance to win," head coach Andy Enfield said. "We were right there. In overtime, they [Stanford] made some tough shots, and we missed some easy ones." 

USC's most obvious chance to win came in regulation, when the Trojans forced a bad Stanford shot with the game tied at 61, then corralled the rebound with 2.3 seconds left. Instead of a quick pass for a last-second shot at the three-point line, however, the Trojans' execution went awry as 7-foot-2 center Omar Oraby got the ball at midcourt. It was his first career three-point attempt, and he was about 10 feet short. "We were supposed to throw it to a guard, and one of our guards went a little bit too early," Enfield said about the play.

Byron Wesley led USC with 18 points, Pe'Shon Howard and J.T. Terrell each had 13, and Strahinja "Luis" Gavrilovic had a career-high 12. Howard also had a career-high 7 steals along with 7 rebounds and 6 assists for a well-rounded effort, but stuffing the stat sheet wasn't enough for the senior guard. "I didn't do a good job of managing overtime," Howard said. "Coach gave me the freedom of calling the plays, so I'll take the responsibility for that." The Trojans were also out-rebounded 6-2 in extra time, and allowed Stanford to go 4-of-5 from the field.

Coming off a win over Cal on Wednesday, the Trojans started off slow, falling down 12-4 in the first five minutes after a series of long possessions ending with ugly shot attempts, punctuated by a Julian Jacobs corner three-pointer that hit off the top six inches of the backboard. USC pressed early and often though, keeping Stanford from breaking the game open before a pair of and-ones from Wesley andGavrilovic cut the deficit to 12-10. 

The Trojans initially struggled to keep the ball in their players' hands, as Terrell made a series of slippery passes and Orabydidn't attempt a shot in the first half while struggling to receive the ball in the post. Still, Gavrilovic built upon his strong Arizona game from two weeks ago, and had eight points in the opening half as USC surged to a 21-19 lead with 5:23 left. Stanford closed the half strong to take a 32-28 lead, as both teams combined to shoot 38.1 percent in the opening half. 

USC employed a press for short spurts during the game, forcing Stanford turnovers and even a 10-second violation and throwing the Cardinal offense into disarray at times. 

The second half was one of runs. After USC took a 39-35 lead with 14:42 left, Stanford reeled off a 9-0 run, and went up 49-43. USC then answered with an 8-0 run of their own before another 9-0 Stanford run pushed the score to 58-51 with 3:54 left. From there, a pair of Wesley floaters followed by a Howard three-pointer (his only make on six attempts) cut the deficit to 61-59, and Wesley coolly hit a pair of free throws with 22 seconds left to tie the game at 61. 

Unlike their first five Pac-12 losses, all coming by at least 18 points, the Trojans had some fight in them throughout. Yet, careless mistakes cost them just like the others. Their zone defense pushed Stanford's big men out, but also led to open perimeter shots on which the Cardinal capitalized. The Trojans had at least four failed alley-oops, and Oraby and Haley got into foul trouble early.

In a season where USC looks destined to finish near the bottom of the Pac-12, the losing is becoming anything but numb. "It was a very tough game," Gavrilovic said. "We all make mistakes. I gave up on this three [Stanford sharpshooter John Gage's in OT]. It's disappointing. It's a hard time for us."

Times don't become any easier this upcoming week, as the Trojans travel north and take on Oregon State on Thursday.

Reach Senior Sports Editor Jacob Freedman here or follow him here.