USC vs North Carolina Picks, Predictions & Odds for Game 3

• It’s a winner-take-all Game 3 between USC and North Carolina, with the winner advancing to the College World Series
• USC was shut out for the first time all year in Game 2, pushing this series to the end game
• See my USC vs North Carolina Game 3 picks and prediction, plus the odds for their June 7 clash

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After an absolute Game 2 masterpiece from UNC ace Jason DeCaro, we’re down to a winner-take-all Game 3 between the USC Trojans (48-17) and North Carolina Tar Heels (49-12-1) in the Chapel Hill Super Regional.

The reward: a ticket to the College World Series.

Sportsbooks like the Tar Heels to come through at home in this decisive encounter, picking them as heavy favorites to advance to Omaha and compete in the CWS.

Game 3 starts at 3pm ET from Bryson Field at Boshamer Stadium in North Carolina, with ESPN carrying the broadcast.

USC vs North Carolina Odds

The Game 3 USC vs North Carolina odds have the home team as -210 moneyline favorites, with the Trojans a distant +160 to win outright.

On the runline, the Tar Heels are is -125 to win by at least two runs, while USC is getting 1.5 runs on the spread, with a payout of -105 if they can stay within range.

The total is set at 11.5 runs, with both sides of the total paying out at -115 odds.

Odds as of June 6 at DraftKings. Claim a DraftKings promo code to bet on Game 3 USC vs North Carolina and other NCAA Baseball Championship games

USC vs North Carolina Picks & Prediction

• Over 11.5 runs (-115 at DraftKings)

DeCaro’s complete game, 2-hit, 8-strikeout game in the 4-0 victory was remarkable on a pair of fronts. Personally, he’d failed to get out of the fourth inning in each of his previous two starts, and it was the first time the Trojans had been shut out in a game this entire season.

It was also the fewest hits USC had posted in a game, and broke a seven-game streak of at least 10 hits in a game.

With DeCaro highly unlikely to see the field after throwing 117 pitches, there’s not another Tar Heels ace waiting in the wings.

The likely pitcher to get the nod is Folger Boaz.

The lefty has struggled this year, carrying an inflated 7.03 ERA to the bump in 14 starts on the year.

USC coach Andy Stankiewicz hasn’t officially named a starter, though it’s expected that reliever Andrew Johnson will get the start, with an all-hands-on-deck approach from the bullpen to get to the finish.

Johnson came through in a must-win regional start against Texas A&M, throwing a whopping 124 pitches over 7.1 innings. He did get in some work in Game 1 against UNC, throwing 34 pitches in 3.2 innings of relief.

The Trojans staff is going to try to keep dormant a North Carolina lineup that was miserable with their clutch hitting in Game 2 going a flat 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position, stranding 13 baserunners.

As USC doesn’t appear likely to get blanked in back-to-back games, I doubt UNC will again be unable to make the Trojans pay for all those baserunners.

With the big-money pitchers already off the board, I don’t see either team’s patchwork pitching combining for anything like we saw on Saturday.

The total suggests the same, bouncing up to 11.5 for Game 3.

The Tar Heels were one of college baseball’s best hitting teams all year, while the Trojans (prior to Game 2) were among the most potent during the NCAA Tournament.

Both should show up in the most important game of the year.