Alijah Arenas, Rodney Rice and KJ Lewis combined for 53 points and No. 21 USC remained unbeaten in nonconference play with a 77-65 road victory over Cal on Wednesday night in Berkeley, Calif.
Arenas led all scorers with 19 points, while Rice had 18 and Lewis 16 for the Trojans (3-0), who trailed 9-2 before rallying to take control against their former longtime Pacific-12 Conference rival.
Sammie Yeanay and Nojus Indrusaitis led a balanced attack with 14 and 13 points, respectively, for the Golden Bears (2-2), who lost a second straight game to a ranked opponent. Cal was beaten 86-68 by then-No. 10 Houston at a neutral site in Stateline, Nev., on Sunday.
USC responded to Cal’s fast start by drawing even at 18-all midway through the first half. The Trojans led 32-30 before scoring the final seven points of the half over the final 1:57, with Rice contributing a 3-pointer.
Trailing 53-42 at the 12:38 mark of the second half, Cal received seven consecutive points from Indrusaitis to pull within 53-49, then closed within three on two occasions. The margin was four before Jacob Cofie contributed a dunk and a free throw to a 7-0 burst that opened a double-digit lead and allowed the Trojans to secure the victory.
Cofie finished with a game-high 15 rebounds to complement 13 points, six assists, two steals and three blocks for USC, which was playing its only true road game before visiting Oregon in a Big Ten Conference contest on Dec. 5.
Jadis Jones added six points and 11 rebounds off the bench for USC.
Indrusaitis also had a team-high six rebounds and three assists for Cal, but shot just 2-for-9 from 3-point range. The Golden Bears went just 4-for-23 (17.4%) from deep en route to their lowest point total of the season.
Semetri Carr contributed six points, five rebounds and five assists for Cal.