Offspring Is Off His Game; Dad, Trojans Are On

They had come to see a soap opera, to see a family’s troubles played out for 40 minutes on the floor of the Sports Arena.

But never could the first respectable and audible crowd of the season, 6,156 strong, have expected to see what it did Thursday night, a 75-62 Trojan upset of the No. 6 Arizona Wildcats.

“It’s unfortunate this whole thing became a circus,” USC Coach Henry Bibby said of the attention paid to the relationship between him and Arizona freshman guard Mike Bibby. “We played Arizona, that is the way we looked at it. And [the victory] feels good because our kids worked hard and deserved it.

“I haven’t had many of these kinds of wins like this in college but this is at the top.”

At the top of everyone’s mind before the game was how Mike would play in front of his father, and how Henry would view a defeat at the hands of his son.

USC’s coach said he and his team were immune to the pressure the circus created, and it looked that way on the floor, particularly in the second half when the Trojans came back from eight down to record their first victory over a ranked foe since defeating the Wildcats on March 14, 1992.

But Mike, who did not comment about his father after the game, played as if his father and USC’s guards were contesting each shot. He scored four points on two-for-eight shooting and was 0 for 5 from three-point range. He was hampered by fouls most of the game, and finished with two steals and two assists.

“There is so much pressure on Mike,” Arizona Coach Lute Olson said. “I thought he did a nice job on defense, but I could see the pressure effecting him on offense. He had a lot of good looks.”

When asked what he thought of the play of No. 10 for Arizona, Henry Bibby said: “That’s my son. I think a lot of him.”

The coach also thought a lot about the play of his guards, particularly Stais Boseman (21 points) and Elias Ayuso (17 points). The pair was most responsible for forcing a season-high 23 turnovers and holding the Wildcats, who had been averaging 86.8 points a game, to a season-low 62.

They also clamped down on high-scoring Miles Simon (13 points) and Michael Dickerson (seven points) in the second half.

“Stais and Larry held those guys in check and that is the story of the game,” said center David Crouse, who had 15 points, 11 in the second half.

USC came out for the second half trailing, 30-22, but forced four quick turnovers and tied the score, 34-34, on a dunk by Crouse with 16:14 left. USC, relying mostly on its defense to supply the offense, took a seven point lead, 44-37, on another Crouse slam at 12:05.

But Simon and Dickerson got on track for a moment, leading the Wildcats back and Dickerson tied the score, 53-53, with a 15-foot jump shot with just under six minutes remaining.

USC, behind timely shooting from Ayuso and Boseman, and clutch free-throw shooting the rest of the way (the Trojans finished 18 for 25), gradually pulled away.

“You could see that the pressure [on defense] was getting to them,” Boseman said. “They started forcing shots and forgetting their plays.”

Said Olson: “The two things that hurt us were Boseman’s defense on Dickerson and Crouse’s ability to challenge the drives in the lane. He had only three blocks but he affected a lot with his presence.”

And after is was over, Henry Bibby walked over to the Arizona locker room, trailed by a pack of reporters. He saw Mike just outside the door, turned to the group and said: “Get away from me, I have a right to be with my own kid.”

And then for a few quiet moments Henry Bibby spoke with his son, finishing the talk with a hug before walking away.

And then Mike went back onto the floor to talk with his mother, Virginia, who said afterward, “I’m just happy it’s over.”

Henry went into the locker room to be with his team.

“This win is huge. This four-game homestand we looked at as the turning point of our season,” Crouse said. “I’ve never beaten Arizona, I’ve been here five years. We came out big.”

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Off Night

Arizona’s Mike Bibby didn’t play to his usual standards. He had been averaging 12.7 points, 6.3 assists and 2.6 steals a game. His numbers vs. USC:

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Min Pts FG 3PT STL AST TO 25 4 2-8 0-5 2 2 1

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