BearTalk

FINAL SCORE: Cal 67, USC 59. The Bears (10-5, 2-1 in Pac-10) got 21 points from Randle and 20 from Robertson (corrected from saying Christopher earlier), and shot 13-for-14 from the FT line in the final 6:14. Much praise afterward for Nikola Knezevic, who came into the game with 9:54 left and took USC’s Dwight Lewis out of his flow. Lewis had 16 points when Knezevic came in, and scored just four more. “I give all credit to Nikola,” Randle said. Cal held the Trojans to 3 points in a span of 9:09, transforming the seven-point deficit into a 59-51 lead before Lewis, at last, got free for a layup with 33 seconds left. Cal, which had 10 turnovers in the first half, had just two more. The Bears outrebounded the physical Trojans 31-27. A huge win for Cal. Lewis finished with 20 for USC (10-6, 2-2).

7:27 2nd H: USC led 50-43 after a basket by Alex Stepheson with 9:42 left. But the Bears have roared back to tie it at 50-all on a layup by Robertson, a 3-pointer by Robertson and a floater in the lane by Randle with 7:42 left. Cal gets the ball back after an illegal pick by Leonard Washington. And the place is loud.

11:54 2nd H: Vucevic just hit a quick turnaround shot over Zhang and USC leads 46-42. Zhang was fouled at the other end and is going to the line for 2 FTs. Cal still shooting 53 percent, but every possession is painful. USC allows nothing easy.

14:35 2nd H: Robertson missed the FT, but Randle just put the Bears in front 40-39 with a jumper. He has 13, Robertson11.

15:17 2nd H: It’s a grinder. Cal trails 39-38, but Robertson just scored in the lane and will go to the FT line for one. Lewis is giving Christopher fits and has 16 points. Sanders-Frison went to the bench with 17:50 left after picking up his third PF.

MORE HALFTIME FODDER: Cal scored a total of 28 points in the first 3:53 of the game and the final 6:26 of the half. The Bears had just two points in everything that came in between. Whichever teams dictates tempo and tone in the second half figures to prevail.

HALFTIME: Cal 30, USC 27. The Bears actually scored 17 points in the final 6:26 of the half, after notching just two points in a span of 9:41 in the middle of the half. Cal is shooting 54.5 percent (12-for-22), but has 10 turnovers. Randle has 11 points and three assists, but also four turnovers. Lewis has 12 points for USC, including a pair of 3-pointers. The Trojans are a rough-and-tumble bunch — winning this one will be a severe challenge for the Bears.

3:36 1st H: The Bears now have nine turnovers, but they also have the lead, 21-19. Randle returned from a short break and hit a jumper, then fed Sanders-Frison, who made one. Zhang and Boykin are back, along with Nikola Knezevic.

6:53 1st H: Is this progress? The Bears at least got a shot off on their last possession — although Omondi Amoke’s dunk try to well-defended at the rim, and missed. That’s two points on Cal’s past 13 trips up the floor. An 11-4 lead has turned into a 15-13 deficit. USC is limited on offense, but boy are they big and physical. Cal is struggling to cope. Cal made four of its first five shots tonight, just one of its past eight.

7:32 1st H: The game is officially being played at USC pace. Trojans lead 15-13 and Cal has scored on just one of its past 12 possessions. Eight pf those 12 possessions ended with a turnover — by six different players.

11:08 1st H: Cal leads 13-9. Lewis has scored all nine points for the Trojans. The rest of the USC team is 0-for-7 from the floor. Four turnovers have stalled the Bears’ offense, which scored just two points on its past seven possessions. Max seems to be giving USC’s big men something to think about on defense.

15:47 1st H: The game’s first timeout comes with the Bears leading 11-4 and Mike Montgomery cheering for his team’s hustle after Christopher and Max Zhang chased Dwight Lewis across the floor, nearly taking the ball from him. It’s the kind of hustle he wants to see. Bears are shooting 4-for-6. Randle has a 3-pointer off transition — something else we didn’t see Wednesday — and two free throws, along with two assists. Boykin made his first two shots.

STARTING LINEUPS: Cal will go with the usual five — Jerome Randle, Patrick Christopher, Theo Robertson, Jamal Boykin and Markhuri Sanders-Frison. Randle was a few minutes late to join his teammates for warmups, but appears to be OK. Our press-row computer monitor is working now, and the Trojans will start their regular lineup: Mike Gerrity, Dwight Lewis, Marcus Johnson, Nikola Vucevic and Alex Stepheson.

GREETING: Hi everyone. I’m back at Haas Pavilion. We’ll see if the Bears fare better against USC than they did three nights ago against UCLA.

Will have lineups as soon as they’re available.