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LOS ANGELES – Shantay Legans’ 3-pointer with three seconds remaining in overtime lifted California to a 92-91 victory over No. 23 Southern California on Thursday night. 

Legans scored the final five points for the Golden Bears (14-3, 5-2 Pac-10), off to their best start in 42 years. 

USC (14-4, 6-2) took a 91-87 lead on a jumper by Sam Clancy with 1:05 remaining and two free throws by Brandon Granville with 37 seconds left, but Legans made a layup 10 seconds later to draw the Bears within two. 

Cal got the ball back when they forced a jump ball with 14 seconds left, and the Bears worked the ball around before Legans nailed his shot from the left wing. 

That was the Bears’ first lead since they went on top 49-48 with 15:08 to play in the second half. USC was unable to get off a shot before time expired. 

Legans, a 5-foot-10 junior, hadn’t scored since the first half before scoring the final five points. He finished with 13 points. 

Brian Wethers, another reserve, led the Bears with 24 points – all but four after halftime. Joe Shipp added 20, including two 3-pointers late in the second half and another in overtime, and also had nine rebounds. 

Clancy led the Trojans with 26 points and 11 rebounds. David Bluthenthal added 20 points, but scored only three in the second half on his sixth and final 3-pointer. Granville added 19 points and six assists. 

A 3-pointer by Wethers with 4.6 seconds remaining in regulation tied the game at 79 and forced the overtime. USC’s Errick Craven hit the back rim on a 25-footer as time ran out. 

A 3-pointer by Desmon Farmer and a baseline jumper by Clancy capped a 16-5 run that gave the Trojans a 64-54 lead with 10:12 remaining. Neither team led by more than five points before the spurt. 

Cal cut USC’s lead to 77-76 on a 3-pointer by Shipp with 1:17 to play and a steal and layin by A.J. Diggs with 45 seconds left. 

Craven’s tip-in with 10 seconds to go put USC up by three points, but Wethers hit from the right corner to tie it. 

The Bears and Trojans entered the game ranked first and fourth, respectively, in scoring defense in the Pac-10, but there was plenty of offense in the first half as USC took a 42-40 lead. 

Bluthenthal went 5-for-6 from 3-point range in the half including a two-hander from about 55 feet away as time expired to cap an 8-3 run and put the Trojans on top. 

Cal’s previous 16 opponents averaged 60.8 points and USC’s first 17 averaged 66.7. 

The game was played before a crowd of 7,582 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena.