The No.8-seeded USC Trojans (21-12) and No.9-seeded Providence Friars (23-10) get together in the first round of the NCAA tournament at PNC Arena. The game starts at 9:50 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 17 and will air on TBS.
The Trojans lost to Utah 80-72 in the 2 of the Pac-12 tournament. Jordan McLaughlin was the game’s leading scorer with 24 points. The Friars, meanwhile, are coming off a 76-68 loss to Villanova in the 3 of the Big East tournament. Rodney Bullock led the team in scoring with 18 points.
Ben Bentil has been hot over the last five games for the Friars, averaging 23.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.0 block, and 2.6 three-pointers.
Baskets could be hard to come by as USC ranks 31st in the nation, allowing just 102.4 points per 100 possessions, while Providence is 21st (99.1). Also, the Friars commit the 10th-fewest errors in the nation (TO% of 16.5%), while the ball-hawking defense of the Trojans causes the 27th-most (opponents’ TO% of 17.0%).
The Trojans have gone 21-12 Straight Up (SU) and 18-15 Against The Spread (ATS). USC has an edge in the rebounding department for this game, where it racks up an average of 39.5 rebounds per game. The Trojans have really locked down opponents on the defensive end, ranking 22nd in the country with a .418 opponent field-goal percentage.
As for their opponent, Providence has a SU record of 23-10 and an ATS record of 18-14. Providence has been particularly bad ATS over its past 10 matchups, going 3-7. The Friars are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking 36th in Division I at 1.38.
USC and Providence have not played one another in a regular season matchup in recent years.
Predictions: SU Winner – USC, ATS Winner – USC
Notes
“USC is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games “.
“USC is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games “.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of USC’s last 6 games “.
The USC Trojans have a defensive rating of 102.4 (ranked 31st), while the Providence Friars have an offensive rating of 106.3 (ranked 168th).
USC has an average field goal percentage of 45.8%. Providence is 4-6 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The USC Trojans rank higher based on their field goal percentage (88th) than their effective field goal percentage (95th). The Providence Friars rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (259th) than their field goal percentage (263rd).
USC ranks 79th in assists, recording 14.9 per game. Providence ranks 36th with 15.9 assists per game.
USC, the 10th-ranked team in blocked shots, records an average of 5.5 per game. Providence ranks lower at 148th with 3.6.
USC ranks 81st in offensive rebounding. Providence ranks 204th in defensive rebounding.
The USC Trojans make an average of 6.3 steals per game. When the Providence Friars allow 6 or more steals, they are a winning 11-6.
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