CORVALLIS -- USC upset No. 9 Oregon State 70-50 Friday night at Gill Coliseum, putting a dent in the Beavers' quest for a third consecutive Pac-12 regular-season title.
OSU (22-3, 11-2 Pac-12) drops into a tie with No. 8 Stanford and No. 10 Washington -- who both won Friday night -- in the Pac-12 standings. The loss also snaps the Beavers' seven-game winning streak since falling Jan. 13 at No. 15 UCLA, their next opponent.
The Trojans built a 13-point lead in the second quarter and withstood every OSU rally attempt. The Beavers tied the game at 31 on an and-1 finish and free throw by Breanna Brown less than two minutes in the third quarter, but got outscored 39-19 the rest of the way.
Key run: After USC built a 13-point lead in the second quarter, the Beavers finished the period on a 12-2 run to close the Trojans' lead to 29-26 at the break. The Beavers held the Trojans scoreless for more than nine minutes during the stretch. OSU tied the game early in the third quarter before USC largely took control the rest of the way.
It was over when: A jumper from USC's Valerie Higgins bounced around the rim and in to give the Trojans a 52-40 lead with about five minutes to play, before Courtney Jaco hit a long three-pointer as the shot clock expired about a minute later.
Key stats: OSU shot 35 percent from the floor, including 6 of 20 from three-point distance, and committed 20 turnovers that led to 28 USC points. The Beavers also went just 10 of 21 from the free-throw line. OSU outrebounded the Trojans 35-33. USC scored 38 points in the paint, compared to 18 from the Beavers.
Top performances: Kristen Simon finished with 14 points and seven rebounds, while Sadie Edwards added 17 points and Courtney Jaco totaled 15 points, four rebounds and four assists. Sydney Wiese led OSU with 17 points but shot just 5 of 15 from the floor and 3 of 11 from three-point distance.
Next up: OSU hosts No. 15 UCLA, which lost 84-75 to Oregon Friday night, on Sunday afternoon.
-- Gina Mizell | @ginamizell
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