USC Trojans vs Michigan State Spartans Prediction, 3/17/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: USC Trojans vs Michigan State Spartans

Date: Friday, March 17, 2023

Location: Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH

TV: CBS

Odds/Point Spread: USC (+2)

The Michigan State Spartans (19-12) will go up against the USC Trojans (22-10) at Nationwide Arena on Friday. USC is 2-point dogs from oddsmakers. The total comes in at 137.5.

The USC Trojans faced Arizona State and took a loss by a score of 77-72 in their last game. USC ended the game with a 41.8% field goal percentage (23 of 55) and buried 8 of their 21 shots from downtown. From the charity stripe, the Trojans knocked down 18 of 24 attempts for a rate of 75.0%. With respect to getting rebounds, they compiled 34 with 8 of them being offensive. They also dished out 9 dimes for this contest in addition to creating 11 turnovers and earning 5 steals. Pertaining to the defense, USC allowed their opponent to shoot 39.0% from the floor on 23 out of 59 shooting. Arizona State recorded 15 dimes and had 9 steals for this contest. In addition, Arizona State snagged 34 rebounds (14 offensive, 20 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Arizona State walked away from this one shooting 60.7% at the free throw line by converting 17 of their 28 tries. They made 14 of 32 shots from downtown. With respect to personal fouls, the Trojans walked away with 23 and Arizona State accumulated 22 personal fouls.

Reese Dixon-Waters is someone who was a contributor in the matchup. He recorded 16 points on 5 out of 9 shooting. He played for 26 minutes and totaled 5 boards. He finished 55.6% from the floor and also dished out 1 assist.

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USC steps onto the court with a mark of 22-10 this year. They are averaging 72.8 points per contest (154th in the nation) while hitting 45.7% from the field. The Trojans are hitting 34.5% on 3-pointers (207 of 600) and 74.4% from the charity stripe. As a unit, USC is pulling in 35.3 boards per contest and has tallied 430 assists for the year, which has them ranked 163rd in the nation in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.5 times per contest and as a squad they commit 17.2 fouls every game.

Defensively, the Trojans are forcing their opponents into 12.5 turnovers per contest while drawing 17.7 fouls. They are giving up 33.4% on shots from downtown and they are 96th in college basketball in PPG from their opponents (67.3). The Trojans are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 39.0% (750 of 1,923) and they surrender 35.8 rebounds per game as a squad. They are 210th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 422 relinquished for the year.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Michigan State Spartans walked away with a victory by a final of 84-78 against Ohio State. The Spartans were able to corral 21 defensive boards and 5 offensive boards for a total of 26 for this contest. They also gave up possession of the ball 8 times, while recording 2 steals for the matchup. Ohio State was called for 20 personal fouls in the game which took the Spartans to the charity stripe for a total of 20 attempts. They were able to convert 14 of the free throw tries for a clip of 70.0%. When discussing shooting from 3-point land, Michigan State knocked down 12 of 20 attempts (60.0%). When this game wrapped up, the Spartans walked away from this one shooting 29 out of 53 from the field which gave them a percentage of 54.7%. The Spartans permitted Ohio State to make 28 of their 58 tries from the field which gave them a percentage of 48.3% in the matchup. They shot 44.0% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 11 of 25 and finished the contest at 11 out of 12 from the free throw line (91.7%). In relation to how they cleaned up the glass, Michigan State allowed Ohio State to pull down 27 in all (6 offensive).

A.J. Hoggard ended up having an impact for the Spartans for the matchup. He made 6 of 11 for this game for a rate of 54.5%, and had 3 rebounds. He accumulated 23 points in his 30 mins on the court and had 7 assists in this game.

Michigan State has a win-loss record of 19-12 so far this year. As an offensive unit, the Spartans are shooting 45.0% from the field, which has them ranked 166th in D-1. Michigan State has accumulated 2,177 points this year (70.2 per game) and they grab 35.7 rebounds per game. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 14.8 times per game (61st in the country) and they turn the ball over 10.9 times per game. The Spartans are responsible for committing 16.5 personal fouls per game and they shoot 76.2% from the charity stripe.

The Michigan State defense surrenders 31.5% on shots from behind the 3-point line (216 of 686) and their opponents are converting on 72.1% of their shots from the free throw line. They relinquish 12.7 dimes and 32.6 boards on a nightly basis, which is ranked 182nd and 88th in the nation. The Spartans on the defensive side of the court are 99th in college basketball in points per game surrendered with 67.4. They are able to force 9.7 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 42.0% from the field (75th in college basketball).

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Michigan State (-2)

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