Bruins Calm Troubled Waters With a Victory Over Trojans

UCLA and USC staged their own Super Bowl on Thursday night.

The beleaguered Bruins got 17 points in the first half from much-maligned Richard Petruska and nine points in a row in the second half from Shon Tarver and beat USC, 90-80, before a crowd of 10,141.

It ended UCLA’s three-game losing streak to its cross-town rival and ended the Trojans’ 16-game winning streak at the Sports Arena.

Both teams are 4-3 in the Pacific 10 Conference. The Bruins are 13-5 overall, and USC is 11-5.

Petruska, scolded by his coach and criticized by the media, scored 19 points before fouling out with 4:02 remaining, and Tarver, who finished with a season-high 26 points, turned the game around.

The Trojans, trailing, 57-48, early in the second half, rode the three-point shooting of Phil Glenn and Dwayne Hackett to move ahead, 72-68. That’s when Tarver took over.

He made a three-pointer--one of the six the Bruins made in 11 shots--and then a layup to put UCLA ahead for good.

Although acknowledging the Bruins’ best overall performance, Coach Jim Harrick didn’t act like a man who was comfortable with his job status.

Asked what the victory meant to him, Harrick answered tartly: “It gave us a 4-3 record. No, I don’t think it did anything to help the situation.”

Harrick has been under fire all season. After the 22-point loss to California on Sunday at Pauley Pavilion, his team seemed beset by internal problems and the coach admitted he was unhappy with the play of the 6-foot-10 Petruska.

“It was nice to have Richard Petruska rejoin the team after his recent vacation,” Harrick said Thursday. “Nobody should have to be motivated to play this game. Here we were going against a team that had won 16 in a row on its home court and it was USC. What more do you need?”

The Bruins were booed by most of the crowd, but all that did was make them feel at home. They have been hearing it at Pauley Pavilion recently.

Petruska let USC know early that the man who scored only five points and had only two rebounds in 12 minutes against Cal was ready to play.

Both teams shot well at the start, but USC was a bit sharper and led, 24-18. With Ed O’Bannon on the bench resting, Petruska took over. He had eight points and two assists in 26-12 spurt that covered a little more than eight minutes and gave the Bruins a 44-36 lead.

The Trojans bombed away from outside in a second-half rally before Tarver came along to restore order.

“We wanted this one bad,” Tarver said. “After the heat he took, I was glad to see Richard have a big game. I thought we all play well. I had an extra incentive. I had never won here. Now maybe I can finish 2-2 here.”

USC Coach George Raveling marveled at the Bruin performance.

“They played as hard against us as any UCLA team has played against us here since I’ve been here,” he said. “I’m not trying to save (Harrick’s) job or anything, but I thought that after the commotion all week that he did a great coaching job. I was wondering myself how the Bruins would react to the turmoil. I found out.

“This game epitomizes what college athletics is meant to be. The two teams busted their butts. I told the kids after the game I wasn’t disappointed in their effort, and I meant it. It’s just hats off to Harrick and his kids.”

Although the Trojans made no excuses, Glenn and Tremayne Anchrum went out in the second half. Glenn suffered a pull behind his knee and hobbled off the court just after the Trojans moved in front. A couple of minutes later, Anchrum had to leave because of a leg injury. Both players returned, but by this time Tarver had all but clinched the victory for UCLA.

The Bruins, a poor-shooting team most of the season, shot 65% in the first half, thanks to eight for 10 from the floor by Petruska. They finished the game shooting 57.6%.

The Trojans, despite their hot shooting early in the game and their four consecutive three-pointers shortly after halftime, shot only 34.4% in the second half, going more than four minutes without a basket to make it easy for Tarver to lead the Bruins from four points behind to a 75-72 lead.

Glenn, who did not score after being injured with 13 minutes to play, led the Trojans with 19 points. Hackett had 17. The Trojans were 13 for 32 on three-pointers.