NCAA TOURNAMENT PICKS — ELITE EIGHT: #1 GONZAGA BULLDOGS VS. USC TROJANS
There’s no question that the USC Trojans have a gargantuan task ahead of them. But the way they have been playing, they give some encouragement to people who think that they can accomplish it.
The Trojans are not necessarily one of those darkhorse teams who did not get a lot of consideration coming into the big dance. They’ve been in the national rankings for much of the season, unlike their Pac-12 colleagues like Oregon State and UCLA. On Tuesday night Men of Troy will try to advance into the Final Four as they take on the Gonzaga Bulldogs, who are trying to add three more wins to complete an undefeated season.
This game begins at 7:15 p.m. Eastern time at Lucas Oil Stadium, televised by CBS, and if you are a BetOnline customer, you can place your wagers even after the game has started, using the Live Betting option that is available to you.
NCAA Tournament – Elite Eight @ Indianapolis
GONZAGA BULLDOGS vs.USC TROJANS, 7:15 PM ET (TBS)
NCAA Tournament Odds: Gonzaga -9 / Total 153.5
USC may have had its most impressive result of the season last time out against Oregon. We say that because the Ducks were seeking a little revenge after USC laid a 72 – 58 defeat on them a little more than a month ago. Well, the margin was the same as it was then, with an 82-68 final. Between guard Tajh Eaddy forward Isaiah White, they hit seven out of 11 from three-point range, as USC continues to blister from behind the arc. And they gave Oregon the same kind of trouble they’ve given everybody when it comes to two-point shooting, as the Ducks made just 44%.
And this brings up one of the really interesting things to keep an eye on during this Elite Eight game. Gonzaga is the top shooting team in the nation when it comes to those attempts from the two-point range, making 63.5%. And meanwhile, the Trojans have allowed opponents to shoot just 41.5% inside the three-point arc, which makes them the toughest in the country from that perspective. So it’s kind of the irresistible force vs the immovable object.
What is kind of encouraging about USC is the fact that star freshman Evan Mobley does not have to score a lot of points to make his impact felt. He only had ten points against Oregon, but he added eight rebounds and six assists, in addition to two block shots. And you can bet that even if he’s not blocking a shot, he is having an influence as to how the opponent is going to attack the basket.
Of course, he’s not alone there; his brother Isaiah is right alongside, and he’s the guy doing the dirty work. When you add in 6 – 8 Drew Peterson, who is a 39% shooter from long-range, the Trojans have a pretty good inside-outside combination going for themselves.
But what they have most of all is the defense. And that’s important here because Gonzaga has more offense than anybody. They lead the nation in scoring, as well as adjusted defensive efficiency, as per KenPom.com. They have a couple of guys who can fill it up from the outside; namely, Corey Kispert and Joel Ayayi. Jalen Suggs is the guy who puts this offense into high gear when he has the ball in his hands, and Drew Timme is extremely efficient around the basket. What’s amazing is that if you look at the metrics available from the KenPom website, you’ll see that Gonzaga has no less than five players among the top 50 for individual defensive ratings.
That’s powerful. But, since they don’t like to rely on a lot of long shots, Gonzaga’s style might be cramped a little bit by the size that USC uses close to the basket. And we wonder if that might make the Bulldogs a little more careful when they bring the ball down the court.
Without question, USC is going to be as deliberate as it possibly can be on offense. We do believe this will contribute to keeping the score down, so we would play an UNDER on this particular game.
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