Southern Cal Going for 5th Straight Victory
The Southern Cal Trojans and the Oregon State Beavers will battle at Gill Coliseum on Thursday night. The Pac-12 Looks to be a dead-even type of conference this season with no one wanting to take charge so every game is important.
TV: 11 p.m., ESPNU LINE: Oregon State -3; O/U: 139
After a home sweep of Cal and Stanford, Southern Cal brings a season-best four-game winning streak into their contest at Oregon State. The Trojans haven’t started conference play 3-0 since the 2002 season. They could get a big boost on the injury front for their trip to Oregon.
Guard Kevin Porter Jr. is projected as the No. 9 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, as a freshman, by nbadraft.net. He returned to practice on Tuesday after missing seven weeks with a bruised quad. He hopes to play in Thursday’s game according to the Orange County Register. Porter was averaging 11.7 points and 3.3 rebounds before the injury. The injury took place in a Nov. 20 victory over Missouri State. Oregon State opened Pac-12 play with a 77-72 Civil War victory at Oregon. They could be without All-Pac-12 forward Tres Tinkle who rolled his ankle in the win over the Ducks.
This, That, and a Dart Throw
Southern Cal is 9-6 overall and 2-0 in Pac-12 action. Coach Andy Enfield said Porter’s official status won’t be determined until closer to the game. The Trojans had just seven healthy scholarship players for the sweep of the Bay Area schools. 6-11″ forward Nick Rakocevic stepped up and averaged 25 points and nine rebounds in the two wins. He shot 69.7 percent from the floor. The performances garnered Pac-12 Player of the Week honors. Forward Bennie Boatwright leads the team in scoring at 15.8 per game. He is followed by Rakocevic, who is slightly behind at 15.7 ppg. Guards Jonah Mathews at 12.1 ppg and Porter at 11.7, are also averaging in double digits. Rakocevic, who leads the Pac-12 in rebounding (10.1) and has seven double-doubles this season, scored a career-high 27 points in the win over Cal.
Oregon State is 9-4 overall and 1-0 in the Pac-12. The 6-8 Tinkle is a legitimate candidate for Pac-12 Player of the Year honors. He ranks second in the conference in scoring at 20.8 ppg, fifth in rebounding 8.6 rpg, and sixth in assists with 4.2 apg. The agile player has scored 20 or more points in four consecutive games. His loss would be a big one for the Beavers. Guard Stephen Thompson Jr. is second in scoring behind Tinkle with an average of 14.2 points. He had 10 points, eight rebounds and six assists in the win over Oregon. Younger brother Ethan Thompson, a 6-5 sophomore, also is averaging in double figures at 12.6 ppg. He is second to Tinkle in rebounding at 5.6.
PREDICTION: USC 70, Oregon State 63
Pac-12 Basketball Betting Odds & Trends
| USC Trojans |
|---|
| Southern Cal is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games |
| Southern Cal is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of USC’s last 6 games |
| USC is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games on the road |
| Southern Cal is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games on the road |
| The total has gone UNDER in 6 of USC’s last 7 games on the road |
| Southern Cal is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Oregon State |
| USC is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Oregon State |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of USC’s last 5 games when playing Oregon State |
| Southern Cal is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Oregon State |
| USC is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Oregon State |
| Oregon State Beavers |
|---|
| Oregon State is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games at home |
| Oregon State is 9-4 SU in its last 13 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Oregon State’s last 6 games |
| Oregon State is 16-5 SU in its last 21 games at home |
| The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Oregon State’s last 7 games at home |
| Oregon State is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing USC |
| Oregon State is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing USC |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Oregon State’s last 5 games when playing USC |
| Oregon State is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games when playing at home against USC |
| Oregon State is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against USC |
Next up:
USC at Oregon Sunday, January 13
Oregon State home to UCLA Sunday, January 13
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