Feb. 15, 2001
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) - Junior Amanda Levens scored 22 points to lead four Sun Devils in double figures as No. 24 Arizona State rallied past Southern California 67-65 Thursday night.
The Sun Devils (17-7, 9-3 Pac-10) trailed most of the game and took their biggest lead when USC coach Chris Gobrecht took two technicals for her protests after Tiffany Elmore was called for fouling Levens with 2:21 remaining.
Levens sank four free throws, sending the Sun Devils to a 66-59 lead.
USC fought back, but freshman Jessica Cheeks couldn't get off a shot as time ran out.
Junior Melody Johnson had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Sun Devils, while Ebony Hoffman had 16 points and eight rebounds for the Women of Troy (9-12, 4-7). USC got 10 points each from Elmore and Tashara Carter.
Arizona State's Brett Leonard hit two free throws with 4:30 left to give the Sun Devils a 59-57 lead they never relinquished.
The Sun Devils made their first 18 foul shots before Levens missed one 6:00 into the second half.
USC took a 36-31 halftime lead when Hoffman hit a shot in the lane and put back a missed free throw, and Carter made a buzzer-beater in the final 18 seconds.
The Sun Devils knocked down a season-high 80.9 percent from the free throw line, while the Women of Troy hit eight of 10 free throw attempts. USC outrebounded ASU 36-32 and outshot the Sun Devils 43.1 (28-65) to 35.9 percent (14-39).
The victory gave Arizona State its first season sweep of USC in school history, while the team's 17 overall wins and nine Pac-10 wins are the most since 1992-93.
The Pac-10-leading Sun Devils return to action Saturday night, taking on UCLA at 7 p.m. at Wells Fargo Arena.