By MICHAEL LEV / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
LOS ANGELES ? USC never stopped defending or believing Tuesday night, even though it would have been easy to do both.
Already riding a three-game losing streak, including Saturday's embarrassing 42-36 loss to Cal Poly, the Trojans fell behind by 16 points in the first half against visiting Morgan State. The Bears, who play in the MEAC, came to Galen Center with an 0-3 record.
But from that early juncture on, USC played with a sense of desperation. That mindset carried the Trojans to a 65-62 victory in front of 2,231 fans.
"The last two games we've just eased into the game or eased into the second half. We've got to start understanding the importance and urgency to play hard," USC coach Kevin O'Neill said.
"We've got to play full throttle every second of the game if we're going to have a chance to be a good team. We're going to get to that, but we're not doing it right now."
Two of the Trojans' three losses were decided by three or fewer points. Tuesday night marked the first time they won a game by three or fewer.
"Every time we do something, it's the first time we do it," O'Neill said. "We're about as virgin a basketball team as you can have."
Six of USC's eight regulars are new to the team. That group includes junior-college transfer Greg Allen, who had played only seven scoreless minutes before Tuesday.
But the shooting guard from Eureka was the first man off the bench, and he provided the spark the Trojans (2-3) needed.
Allen, a 3-point specialist at Navarro College (Texas), started USC's comeback with a 3-point basket. He made three in all and scored a career-high 14 points in 35 minutes.
"I was just waiting for my opportunity, basically," Allen said.
"I wasn't worried about my minutes. My job was not to come here and complain about minutes, but when I got my opportunity, to make the most of it."
Trailing by eight at halftime, USC started the second half with a 9-0 run to claim its first lead.
The Trojans extended the advantage to nine, but the Bears rallied to tie the score at 62 with 3:26 remaining.
Maurice Jones scored the go-ahead point on a free throw and bumped the lead to three with a floater with 38 seconds left. Jones, who had been shooting just 25.4 percent, made 7 of 10 shots for 18 points. He also had six assists and only one turnover.
Aaron Fuller, who had a game-high 19 points, made the final defensive stop with a steal with eight seconds remaining.
"This was definitely a must-win," Fuller said. "We were telling ourselves, we've got to play every possession like it's our last possession."
Contact the writer: mlev@ocregister.com
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