The NCAA Tournament is here, and the Pac-12 USC Trojans will square off against the Big Ten Michigan State Wolverines in Friday’s first action.
The second day of the NCAA Tournament kicks off with a powerhouse matchup of two big programs. This will be a heck of a way get Friday’s tourney action underway.
The 10th-seeded USC Trojans and 7th-seeded Michigan State Spartans will face off to begin the Friday slate of games in a Power-5 clash on the hardwood.
This will be USC’s 21st trip to the Big Dance, and their third consecutive tourney big. The Trojans were an Elite 8 team in 2021. Michigan State is one of the tourney blue-bloods with their 36th appearance in the tournament, having last advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2019.
How to watch USC vs. Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament Round 1
All of the NCAA Men’s Tournament games will be broadcast on the CBS family of networks this year, as well as TNT, TBS and TruTV.
USC. vs. Michigan State will be one of the most-watched games of the first round and will be played at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Date: Friday, March 17
Time: 12:15 pm ET
Channel: CBS
Streaming: NCAA March Madness Live, fuboTV
Announcers: Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl
USC vs. Michigan State NCAA Tournament Round 1 odds
Per odds posted on FanDuel Sportsbook, the Spartans are 2.5-point favorites. The game has an over/under of 137.5, a -132 moneyline on Michigan State., and a +110 moneyline on USC.
Both teams were just above .500 against the spread this season, but USC had fantastic moneyline results, going 22-10-0 on the line. With the common 10-seed upsets of the 7-seed it might be worth looking at a moneyline bet on the Trojans.
Utah St. vs Missouri NCAA Tournament Round 1 prediction
While Michigan State is the favorite and higher seed here, it hasn’t been a very typical season for the Spartans. They’ve been streaky, going hot and cold all season long, and didn’t play their best basketball towards the end of the year. USC had similar results, and struggled against better teams in the Pac-12.
It’s tempting to pick USC in the outright upset, but tournament-tough Michigan State will hold against the Trojans.