Washington vs. USC Handicapping

College Basketball Betting – Huskies Have To Avoid Upset At USC

While NHL trade rumors were the were the talk of the weekend, college hoops fans were busy as the regular season is winding to a close and that means teams are scrambling to reach the NCAA Tournament. One of those teams are Washington, who have been red-hot as of late, and the Pac-12 regular-season title may not even earn them a berth. The Huskies would do well to win it, but they must avoid an upset at USC on Thursday night.

Washington USC Odds – Thursday, 10:30 PM ET

The Huskies (20-8, 13-3 Pac-12) began a three-game road stretch to close out the regular season with a 59-55 at rival Washington State, and Bet Online players watched them overcome a 13-point deficit in the last 11 minutes of the game, which could carry over to this contest. Tony Wroten led the way with 21 points, six rebounds and five assists, while C.J. Wilcox came off the bench with 16 points for the Huskies, who shot 35.8% from the field, but they held the Cougars to 34.6% and they were also fortunate that Washington State had an awful night from the foul line, hitting just 17 of their 32 attempts. If Washington makes it to the dance, they’re going to be a problem for a few teams, but they have to get to the March Madness spreads stage first.

The Trojans (6-23, 1-15 Pac-12) dropped their seventh in a row in a 56-52 loss at Arizona State, shooting a miserable 39.6% from the floor and they were outrebounded 32-19 by the Sun Devils. Byron Wesley was the high man with 22 points and seven rebounds for the Trojans, who have been out of the Tournament race from the beginning of the conference season, but those who purchase bookie software know that teams like USC are dangerous at this point because they have nothing to lose and relish playing the role of spoiler.

Still, Washington will be the favorites on the road at USC, where they are 2-3 SU and ATS in their last five visits with three of those games falling under the posted total. There is no good reason why the Huskies should lose this game because they are more talented and they have more motivation. The regular-season title is within their grasp and thanks to losses against Marquette and Duke on neutral courts, they may have to win the regular-season title and the conference tournament as well. Outside of California, there is no team in the Pac-12 that should make it to the NCAA Tournament besides Washington, but they have to prove it. It’ll start with the Huskies covering the spread at USC in Thursday’s college basketball betting picks.