Last month we introduced our new project, which is centered around determining the top YouTube moment in Pac-12 basketball history. We continue the nomination portion with USC.

[Ed note: These are just the top moments we could find on YouTube, which has a vast number and array of videos, but we won’t be able to cover the entire 99 years of the conference.]

We open with a comeback that could very well go on to win this entire tournament. Down 84-79 with 2.8 seconds left, USC small forward Adam Spanich caught a pass in the corner and hit a three-pointer with just 0.8 remaining to pull the Trojans within two. What happened next will go down in Pac-12 lore, as Spanich then intercepted Oregon’s inbound pass at half-court, dribbled once, and flung up a long shot. The ball hit nothing but net, and just like that the Trojans had scored six points in under three seconds to shock Oregon. Some may say that if you pause the video just as the clock hits triple zeros, the ball was still in Spanich’s hands. That may or may not be true, but it doesn’t take away from the spectacular feat.

Another clip, another Spanich buzzer-beater. A year before their wild comeback victory in Eugene, the Trojans struggled mightily and were limping into the final weekend of the season with a record of 7-19. They met Arizona at the Sports Arena in the penultimate game of the season, and the Wildcats came into Los Angeles ranked either first or second in the country, depending on which poll you used. They would leave with a heart-breaking and puzzling loss, as Spanich forced overtime with a three-pointer on his first field goal of the game, then bricked in the game-winner as time expired in the extra period for his only other field goal. The shot sent USC students into a state of delirium and gave us an impressive court-rushing. The Trojans would build upon the upset win and blow out Arizona State in the season finale two days later.

Remember this shot? In what has been a terrible season with very few bright spots for first-year coach Andy Enfield, this buzzer beater lifted everyone’s spirits heading into Christmas. Tied at 76 with the slot clock turned off against Dayton, the Trojans were able to hold for the final shot. Senior guard Pe’Shon Howard got off a clean look, and his fadeaway three-point attempt from NBA range splashed throught to send the Flyer fans home very unhappy.

Connor Pelton (300 Posts)

I'm from Portland. College basketball and football is life.

This entry was posted on Monday, March 3rd, 2014 at 2:31 pm by Connor Pelton (@ConnorPelton28) and is filed under microsites, pac 12. Tagged: adam spanich, andy enfield, pe'shon howard, usc. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.