No. 12-ranked UCLA women rally late to defeat USC

UCLA clawed back from a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter to defeat USC 61-60 on Sunday at Pauley Pavilion, securing its eighth consecutive win in the crosstown rivalry.

Freshman Londynn Jones led the Bruins with 22 points off the bench, and the No. 12 Bruins (14-2, 3-1 Pac-12) limited USC to just two-of-eight shooting in the fourth quarter.

After their second-half comeback attempt came up short in a 59-56 loss to UCLA in Galen Center on Dec. 15, the Trojans (11-4, 1-3 Pac-12) were the ones trying to hang on to a late lead Sunday. USC was up by 12 entering the fourth quarter, but UCLA charged back behind Charisma Osborne and Jones.

The Bruins opened the fourth quarter with 10 unanswered points. Struggling from the field, where she missed 13 of her first 14 shots, Osborne scored four of the first six points during the run from the free-throw line. She grabbed a steal on a USC inbounds pass, allowing Jones to score her second straight basket on an acrobatic layup that cut the deficit to two points. A packed crowd dressed in matching shirts for UCLA’s “Blue Out” roared as the Bruins were within one possession for the first time since the 9:20 mark of the third quarter.

Bruins fans only grew louder when freshman Lina Sontag poked the ball free from Rayah Marshall under the USC basket and passed to Osborne, who knocked down a short jumper to put UCLA ahead by one. It was just her second made field goal of the game.

Osborne finished with nine points on two-of-16 shooting, playing more than 37 minutes in her first game back from a shoulder injury that kept her out of UCLA’s loss to Oregon State on Jan. 1. In the final minute of the game Sunday, UCLA’s leading scorer had trainers stretching her legs out on the court because of cramps.

The Trojans were without leading scorer Kadi Sissoko, who missed her second consecutive game because of an undisclosed injury. The transfer forward from Minnesota had 20 points and eight rebounds in USC’s three-point loss to the Bruins last month.

Without Sissoko, USC relied on Marshall in the post. The sophomore ended her streak of five double-doubles, finishing with 15 points and eight rebounds after going scoreless in the fourth quarter and fouling out with 1:39 remaining and UCLA up by one.

Marshall helped USC build a four-point halftime lead with eight points on four-of-six shooting in the second quarter. The Bruins turned the ball over six times in the quarter and made just four shots.

UCLA’s scoring struggles continued in the third quarter, which included a 9-0 run from USC as the Bruins missed seven of their first eight shots in the period.

Kayla Williams had 15 points, eight of which came on free throws, for USC, while Destiny Littleton finished with 10 points and five rebounds, but her potential game-tying three-point attempt missed the mark in the final seconds.