Bizarre basket

College basketball has produced any number of uniquely memorable shots over the years many of them long-range missles that banked in at the buzzer. One that was neither long nor especially important stands out as this season's grand prize winner.

Responsible for the wonderfully spontaneous play was Southern California's Dwight Anderson, who made a split-second decision to shoot rather than simply retrieve a ball going out of bounds. That he was airborne beyond the base line enhanced the degree of difficulty. His well-lofted shot cleared the backboard and dropped cleanly through the basket on the other side.

The hoop, which came in the first half of the Trojans' final regular season game against Washington, did not directly influence the outcome. It did, however , cause the home crowd to buzz for minutes afterwards. USC went on to win and secure a berth in the NCAA tournament.