BY STEVE HANF
SALISBURY POST

PHILADELPHIA— All the college basketball tradition in the world couldn’t make up for Kentucky’s worst first half of the season.

The University of Southern California built a 19-point halftime lead, then answered every Wildcat challenge over the furious final 20 minutes for a stunning 80-76 victory. Thursday night’s win propelled the sixth-seeded Trojans into the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday against Duke.

The Trojans, with nine tournament wins to their name, hadn’t advanced past the Sweet 16 since 1954, when it was a 24-game tourney. Second-seeded Kentucky, with its seven national championship banners and 87 tournament wins, simply had no answer for the surprising Trojans.

“The last three games, I have been speechless,”said USC head coach Henry Bibby, whose school won three games in a tourney for the first time. “I like being speechless in these situations. It’s a great win.”

Junior forward David Bluthenthal enjoyed a career night. His 27 points — two shy of his previous best — and career-high six 3-pointers paced the upset. Bluthenthal, who was 6-for-9 from long range with two deep bombs in the second half, also drained five free throws in the final minute to seal the win.

The Wildcats never led. Southern Cal scored the game’s first five points against a Kentucky squad that looked tentative on offense and slow on defense.

Mobile USCcenter Brian Scalabrine, who finished with 13 points, shut down Kentucky star Tayshaun Prince and had his way at the offensive end. Scalabrine drained a pair of jumpers and a layup to help his team open the lead.

Back-to-back hoops from Bluthenthal gave USC a 27-8 advantage at the 11-minute mark. The halftime margin stood at 43-24 thanks to 12 Wildcat turnovers and 37-percent shooting, including a 2-for-11 effort from the 3-point line. The 24 points marked Kentucky’s lowest halftime total of the season.

USC drained 57 percent of its first-half shots, and got another easy one right out of halftime on Scalabrine’s slam.

The 21-point lead would be the Trojans’ largest of the game.

Kentucky exploded to life, racing off to a 22-3 run over the next six minutes. Guard Keith Bogans got hot, hitting three shots down low and a 3-pointer. His baseline drive pulled Kentucky nearly all the way back at 48-46 with 13:29 to go.

Five times, Kentucky pulled within a shot of tying or taking the lead. Five times, USC scored on the next possession.

“They had a couple of big runs, but we were able to stop them when we needed to,”Bibby said. “We’ve been in those situations before and the kids pulled together. They hung in there, focused and knew they could go after Kentucky.”

Bluthenthal’s deep 3-pointer over Prince put USC ahead 73-64 with 4:05 to play. Six straight points by Charlotte native — and former North Carolina signee Jason Parker — gave Kentucky one last chance.

The Wildcats got within 75-74 on Erik Daniels’ follow shot with 32 seconds to play. Bluthenthal’s free throws put the lead back at three points, and the Wildcats’ night ended when Bogans missed a pair at the other end.

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NOTES: The Kentucky press wasn’t much of a factor: In the first half, the Wildcats weren’t scoring enough to set it up. In the second, point guard Brandon Granville did a great job before picking up his fourth foul. Robert Hutchinson then came in off the bench and performed just as well. For the game, the Trojans turned the ball over just 14 times, while Kentucky had 16. … Prince finished with six points, his lowest total since scoring three on a 1-for-10 night against Penn State in the fourth game of the year. He took only eight shots.