BOULDER – Down just by two at halftime, the University of Colorado lacrosse team had a comeback against Southern California in its sights. But, a strong second half by the Trojans helped USC push past the Buffs, 11-5, on Saturday afternoon. The No. 22 Trojans improved to 7-1 with the win, and are now 2-0 in Pac-12 Conference games. The Buffs, which are 23rd nationally, drop to 3-4 overall and have a 2-1 record in league play. WHAT HAPPENED: The Trojans scored the first four goals of the game before Miranda Stinson was able to get the Buffs on the board with 17:02 left in the first half. Charlie Rudy was able to find the back of the net with 10:19 left in the first, which cut USC's lead to two (4-2). USC scored again with just under 10 minutes to play in the first, but then the Buffs scored another pair of goals (Stinson and Samantha Nemirov) to bring the Buffs within one (5-4). Nemirov's goal came with just 18 second left in the half, but was not the final goal as the Trojans scored one final time with nine seconds left to take a lead of 6-4 into halftime. The Trojans scored the first three goals in second half and stifled CU's offense. The Buffs only added one goal in the half, which would be Stinson's third of the game, at 13:51. USC would score two more times before the clock expired. KEY STATISTIC: Most of the stats were comparable, but the biggest deficit for the Buffs was in draw controls. USC led in that category, 8-3, in the first half and had the edge in the game, 11-7. NOTABLE: Samantha Nemirov extended her points-streak to 27 games, which is the second longest streak in CU history. The Buffs are 3-0 on the road this season and conversely are 0-4 at home. TEAM LEADERS: Colorado Points: 6 Goals: 5 Assists: 1 Draw Controls: 7 Ground Balls: 21 Saves: 7 USC Points: 17 Goals: 11 Assists: 6 Draw Controls: 11 Ground Balls: 22 Saves: 10 UP NEXT: Colorado will host Arizona State on Sunday, March 17. The game will start at 1 p.m. at Kittredge Field. QUOTEABLE: Head Coach Ann Elliott Whidden General Statement "I didn't think we did a very good job of coming out and playing aggressive, making every play count. I thought we played a little scared. I thought we didn't play very confident. I don't think we played very hard. USC is a very good team, they're very well coached. I thought they came out and were in control. They made their possessions count. Defensively, after the first few possessions we did a good job getting stops and playing defense. We had trouble clearing the ball, which is unacceptable. We have to do a better job there. Offensively, I don't think we did a very good job executing and I don't think the players we needed to make plays made plays. I don't think we were aggressive enough. Our players didn't make their time count." On the push at the end of the first half "Having some possessions and clearing the ball, we didn't have the ball a lot in the beginning of the game. We struggled on draw controls and clearing. So, being able to clear the ball and giving ourselves touches was helpful. Most of our goals were in transition." On the changing of the game time "Our team got an extra day to rest. We weren't traveling, we were the team here. We were ready to go today and we just didn't show up. One, we've got to figure out the difference from playing on the road and at home. We're 0-4 at home and 3-0 on the road. We're probably the only team in the country with that record. Two, what's the difference between last weekend and this weekend? It's effort and it's attitude. We didn't have it today and it's not acceptable." On preparing for tomorrow's matchup against Arizona State "At the end of the day, it's not about X's and O's. We watched Arizona State's game last night against Oregon. They're a confident team, they're aggressive and athletic. At the end of the day, we've got to be a team that wants to compete and wants to win. We've got to come out here willing to play hard. We have a lot of talent on this team but we're not using it. We're just sitting back and watching other teams play when we're here. For us to win, it's about effort. If we care tomorrow and show up as the aggressive team we were last week we'll be successful. If we're not, then we're not going to be." Jen Mistretta, Jr., Midfielder General Statement "I think we came out with a lot of intensity. We were down by a few in the first couple minutes but we didn't let that get to us. Coach Elliot told us to keep up the intensity throughout the entire game so everyone did what they could out there. It just didn't go our way. But, I think we'll come out really strong tomorrow and improve ourselves." On the effect of a changed game time "I don't think it affected us. I think we come out to every game with the same mindset no matter what day we're playing. We just try to stick to the game plan. I really don't think it was a factor." On tomorrow against Arizona State "This is definitely one of the quicker turnarounds we've had. So, we're going to have to study up tonight, rest our bodies and come out there strong tomorrow for ASU." On setting the mindset for playing at home "I think we have to come out with intensity every time we play here. We have to know that it's our field and our home. So, we're going to come out with a lot of intensity.