Washington State Cougars vs USC Trojans Prediction, 2/2/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Washington State Cougars vs USC Trojans

Date: Thursday, February 2, 2023

Location: Galen Center in Los Angeles, CA

TV: fuboTV

The Washington State Cougars (10-13) are on their way to Galen Center on Thursday where they will try to beat the USC Trojans (15-6).

The Washington State Cougars faced off with Arizona State and took home the win by a score of 75-58 in their last game. Washington State walked away from the contest with a 36.9% field goal percentage (24 out of 65) and knocked down 14 of their 34 three-point shots. From the charity stripe, the Cougars converted 13 of their 18 shots for a rate of 72.2%. Pertaining to grabbing rebounds, they earned a total of 42 with 15 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 11 assists for the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and earning 4 steals. When it comes to defending, Washington State allowed 33.9% from the floor on 19 of 56 shooting. Arizona State earned 9 assists and had 6 steals for the game. On top of that, Arizona State totaled 31 rebounds (5 offensive, 26 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Arizona State went 78.9% when shooting free throws by burying 15 of their 19 shots. They also made 5 of their 15 attempts from beyond the arc. Regarding fouls, the Cougars walked away with 15 while Arizona State accumulated 19 fouls.

Andrej Jakimovski is someone who was a major contributor in this contest. He finished the contest at 50.0% from the field and earned 3 dimes. He was on the hardwood for 31 minutes played and also pulled down 7 rebounds. He was able to score 22 points on 7 of 14 shooting.

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Washington State enters this game with a record of 10-13 for the campaign. They turn it over 12.8 times per contest and as a squad they commit 16.2 fouls every game. As a team, Washington State is pulling in 35.1 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 260 dimes on the season, which ranks 285th in the country in terms of passing. The Cougars are connecting on 36.0% on shots beyond the perimeter (198 of 550) and 72.2% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 67.9 points per outing (279th in Division 1) while going 42.3% from the field.

Defensively, the Cougars are able to force 11.1 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 17.0 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 132nd in college basketball in giving up assists to their opponents with 266 surrendered on the year. The Cougars defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 44.5% (558 of 1,254) and they surrender 31.8 boards per game as a basketball team. They are giving up 30.9% on shots from beyond the perimeter while they are 57th in college basketball in PPG allowed (64.7).

In their last game, the USC Trojans went home victorious with a score of 77-64 against UCLA. When talking about rebounding, USC permitted UCLA to snag 31 in total (12 offensive). They finished 44.4% from behind the 3-point line by connecting on 8 out of 18 and walked away from this one shooting 16 of 20 from the free throw line (80.0%). The Trojans permitted UCLA to knock down 20 out of their 56 attempts from the floor which left them shooting 35.7% in the game. In all, the Trojans went 25 out of 51 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 49.0%. In relation to shots from beyond the arc, USC buried 10 of their 22 attempts (45.5%). They were able to make 17 of the free throws for a rate of 94.4%. UCLA committed 14 personal fouls in the game which took the Trojans to the charity stripe for 18 shots. They also gave up possession of the ball 9 times, while getting 5 steals in this contest. The Trojans were able to snag 19 defensive boards and 5 offensive rebounds totaling 24 in the matchup.

Boogie Ellis ended up being a factor for the Trojans for the matchup. He converted 9 of 17 for the game giving him a rate of 52.9%, and had 4 rebounds. He scored 31 points in his 37 mins on the court and accounted for 6 dimes for the contest.

USC has a record of 15-6 so far this season. The Trojans commit 17.0 fouls per contest and they connect on 73.4% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 13.9 times per game (134th in college hoops) and they are losing possession via turnover 13.3 times per game. USC has accumulated 1,502 points for the campaign (71.5 per contest) and they pull in 35.5 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the court, the Trojans are connecting on 45.7% from the field, which is ranked 126th in the nation.

The USC defense gives up 33.7% on shots from beyond the arc (161 of 478) and opponents are making 72.6% of their shots from the charity stripe. They relinquish 13.1 assists and 36.1 boards per game, which is ranked 217th and 294th in those defensive categories. The Trojans on the defensive end are ranked 85th in college hoops in PPG allowed with 66.2. They are forcing 13.2 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 38.4% from the floor (7th in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take USC

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