Busting Brackets
Fansided

Pac-12 Basketball: USC vs. UCLA preview, prediction, TV schedule

By Carmine Carcieri

Feb 12, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Oregon State Beavers forward Drew Eubanks (12) battles UCLA Bruins forward TJ Leaf (22) for a rebound in the second half of the game at Pauley Pavilion. UCLA won 78-60. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 12, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Oregon State Beavers forward Drew Eubanks (12) battles UCLA Bruins forward TJ Leaf (22) for a rebound in the second half of the game at Pauley Pavilion. UCLA won 78-60. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

After losing by eight earlier this season at Galen Center, the UCLA Bruins are looking for revenge against their Pac-12 basketball rivals USC.

TV Schedule: Saturday, Feb. 18, 10:00 p.m. ET, PAC-12 Network

Arena: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA

Prediction: UCLA 88 USC 81

In the last four meetings between two Los Angeles rivals, USC and UCLA, the Trojans have won all four by an average of 16.2 points.

Related Story: Three takeaways from UCLA's comeback win over Oregon

On Saturday at Pauley Pavilion, the Bruins are out for some revenge and are looking to remain in the picture for the Pac-12 regular season title. The Bruins currently trail the first-place Arizona Wildcats by 2.5 games but have five games remaining, including a big-time showdown against Sean Miller’s squad on February 25.

But first, they must handle their in-city rival, a team that has already beaten the Bruins this season by eight points at the Galen Center.

So where do the Bruins have the advantage in this match-up? On the offensive end of the floor, where they possess arguably the best player in college hoops in Lonzo Ball and a plethora of impressive sidekicks in T.J. Leaf, Isaac Hamilton, Bryce Alford and Aaron Holiday, among others.

The Bruins struggle on the defensive end of the floor — they give up 76 points per game, which is 267th in the country — but they were able to overcome a 19-point deficit against Oregon (when they switched Ball onto Dillon Brooks) and held both Washington and Oregon State under 60 points.

Meanwhile, USC prides themselves on balance, terrific guard play, unselfishness and versatile play from their bigs. After going undefeated in the non-conference portion of the schedule, USC has lost five games in conference play (21-5 overall, 8-5 in league play), including match-ups against Oregon (twice), California, Utah on the road and Arizona.

The Trojans have an impressive offensive attack, but will they try to run with UCLA? Or will they more realistically pick and choose when to score in transition and when to manage the pace of the game?

Next: Five potential replacements for Mark Gottfried

Andy Enfield’s team has four players averaging in double figures and two other players who are averaging over nine points a game. That means that this game could be a straight shootout, one that significantly favors the Bruins.

Home/UCLA Bruins