When the time came to blossom, Derrick Rose emerged from the soil.  

The marquee match-up of the Jimmy V Classic pitted heralded collegiate stars Derrick Rose of Memphis against USC?s high-flying O.J. Mayo.  John Calipari?s second-ranked Memphis Tigers escaped Madison Square Garden with a hard-fought 62-58 overtime victory after Rose bailed them out by hitting the decisive free throws that gave them the lead for good.    

The much ballyhooed match-up of Rose versus Mayo was overshadowed by the overall sloppy play and contagious poor shooting from the field.  Each team committed twenty-one turnovers while USC shot just 29% compared to the 37% shooting by Memphis.  However, it was Derrick Rose who came out of the dark in the second half and proved to be the difference in the game.

The first half of this individual duel belonged to O.J. Mayo, who scored 10 of his game-high 16 points and flustered the dynamic Rose into playing without the same muster we have seen from his thus far this season.  He seemed timid at the point and settled for moving the ball around the court, rather than commanding the flow of the game.  

USC Head Coach Tim Floyd had implemented a confusing ?triangle-and-2? defensive scheme that, along with Mayo?s length and quickness on defense, rattled Rose?s nerves and stifled his ability to penetrate the paint.  The 8,300 spectators at the Basketball Mecca of the World were left wondering whether or not Rose was even in the game when they noticed he had zero points at the half.  

But when he came out of the tunnel for the second session, he was ready to sprout his dormant thorns.  

When it became clear to Rose that his young team was affected by the big stage of the game, he took control of the game and scored his first points three minutes into the second half.  His heightened intensity was infectious.  Memphis? hounding defense began to change the tempo of the game, and Rose?s ball-hawking ability propelled the Tigers to respond to a seven-point deficit.  

With eight minutes remaining in regulation, Rose put the team on his back and led an inspired 8-0 run in just over a minute to regain the lead.  First, the freshman phenom crashed the offensive boards and out-jumped the Trojan big men to tip-in a missed Memphis shot.  On the defensive end of the court, Rose forced fellow Diaper Dandy O.J. Mayo into missing a contested shot, grabbed the rebound and fed big man Willie Kemp for an easy layup on the break.

The next time down the floor saw Rose step to Mayo again, steal his attempted pass, and feed Antonio Anderson for a fast-break layup to take the lead.  Following a USC timeout, Rose stormed the inbounds pass from center court, knocked the ball loose from the Trojan guards, scooped the ball up and delivered a thunderous two-handed jam from a complete standstill.  The spring in his legs nearly propelled his head into the rim.  

This spurt of savage relentlessness is what separates Derrick Rose from the rest of the young point guards in the nation.  His spirited play continued as he rebounded from an awful first half to produce 9 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and a blocked shot.  However, none of his nine points were as important as the two free throws he hit in the overtime period that gave the Tigers the lead for good.

Rose demonstrated that he is capable of taking control of the game on both sides of the floor.  Despite his uncharacteristically woeful shooting, his superior court awareness allowed him to put himself and his teammates in position to succeed.  His unparalleled athleticism was on display as he elevated for offensive rebounds, flat-footed dunks, and delivered precise cross-court passes.  There is no question that he has the talent to be a top pick in the 2008 NBA Draft.  

But what made Tuesday such a successful night for the young point guard was his ability to turn around a poor first-half performance and lead his struggling team to victory.  

That is why, this budding Rose may have finally grown his thorns.  

Feel free to contact Jason M. Williams with your thoughts.  He can be reached at Jason.Williams@RealGM.com for comments or questions.