Peterson sparks USC to 59-57 victory over Vermont

 Drew Peterson scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half and Southern Cal rallied to beat Vermont 59-57 on Tuesday night.

Peterson made just 1 of 7 shots in the first half and the Trojans (2-1) trailed 27-22 at intermission. But the senior came out after the break and hit 5 of 7 shots from the floor, all five of his free throws and took over down the stretch.

Peterson's layup tied the game at 30 with 13:44 left to play. From there the lead changed hands nine times until Peterson sank four straight free throws to give the Trojans a 46-44 lead with 4:43 remaining.

Vermont (1-3) tied the game at 49 on a 3-pointer by Nick Fiorillo with 3:01 left, but Peterson answered with a layup and a three-point play and the Trojans stayed in front.

Peterson added eight rebounds and eight of USC's 10 assists. Reese Dixon-Waters had 13 points, while Boogie Ellis scored 10.

Finn Sullivan sank three 3-pointers and scored 17 to lead the Catamounts. He added six rebounds, three assists and blocked two shots. Dylan Penn scored 11.

USC beat Vermont 64-56 in December of 2014 in the only other meeting between the schools.

USC is coming off a program record-tying 26-win season. USC's 73 wins over the last three seasons is two better than any previous three-year run.

This was the third game of an eight-game road trip for Vermont. The Catamounts will travel more than 8,400 miles this month.