The No. 7 seed Michigan State Spartans (19-12, 11-9 Big 10) take on the No. 10 seed USC Trojans (22-10, 14-7 Pac-12) Friday at Nationwide Arena in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. USC lost to the Arizona State Sun Devils 77-72 at T-Mobile Arena on March 9 in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Conference Tournament.
With 16 points apiece, Reese Dixon-Waters and Tre White were the top scorers in defeat. Kobe Johnson chipped in with 15 points and eight rebounds.
Michigan State lost in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tourney on Friday at United Center, falling to the Ohio State Buckeyes 68-58. Joey Hauser had 15 points in defeat, carrying the team.
The Trojans have been led this season by Boogie Ellis, who is averaging 18.0 points per game. Meanwhile, Drew Peterson is contributing 6.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. Tyson Walker (14.6 ppg), Hauser (14.2), and A.J. Hoggard (12.5) have supplied much of the Spartans’ offense.
Hauser also has averaged 6.9 rebounds per game, while Hoggard has tallied 6.0 assists per game, 10th-most in the NCAA. Holding opponents to only 39.0% from the field, the Trojans are one of the toughest FG% defenses in the country (7th).
USC is 6-4 in the last 10 games with an average margin of +5.6 (74.7-69.1). Michigan State has split the last 10 (5-5), scoring 72.1 points per game on average while allowing 71.1 (+1.0 margin). The Spartans are averaging 70.2 ppg for the full season while allowing 67.4.
TROJANS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Reese Dixon-Waters: 17.8 | 12.3 | +5.5
Points per game:
Boogie Ellis: 23.0 | 18.0 | +5.0
Drew Peterson: 9.6 | 14.0 | -4.4
SPARTANS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Tyson Walker: 26.4 | 19.9 | +6.5
Pierre Brooks II: 0.0 | 5.5 | -5.5
Points per game:
Jaden Akins: 13.4 | 8.4 | +5.0
Assists per game:
Tyson Walker: 3.8 | 2.8 | +1.0
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
Michigan State (-135)
Want up to a $1K risk free bet for this pick?
Claim with 
today!
If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our college basketball hub page for all your college basketball needs!
*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
