Colorado Buffaloes vs USC Trojans Picks and Odds
- The Colorado Buffaloes are 1.5-point favorites over the USC Trojans in their Pac-12 Tournament semifinal on Friday, March 12th
- The Buffaloes (#23) and the Trojans (#24) are the only Pac-12 teams in the AP Top 25
- Colorado has won six straight games against USC; See odds and analysis below
The USC Trojans are certainly having themselves a season. There’s just one problem – next up for them in the Pac-12 semifinals are the Colorado Buffaloes.
Colorado has USC’s number, and that could mean USC’s number might be up in terms of capturing the Pac-12 title.
Oddsmakers definitely are leaning that way. The Buffaloes, who’ve won six straight over the Trojans, are the 1.5-point favorites to do it again in Friday’s 11:30pm ET tipoff at T-Mobile Arena.
Colorado vs USC Pac-12 Semifinal Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | -124 | -1.5 (-110) | O 134.0 (-110) |
| USC | +104 | +1.5 (-109) | U 134.0 (-110) |
Odds as of March 12th at DraftKings
Buffaloed By Colorado
Even in the midst of a magical season, as USC pursues its first outright conference title since 1960-61, Colorado remains the Trojans’ kryptonite. Southern Cal hasn’t got the better of the Buffaloes since Feb. 21st, 2018.
In the sextet of losses that they’ve suffered, for the most part USC hasn’t even been close. Only two of the six setbacks were single-digit defeats. Colorado’s average margin of victory has been 11.3 points per game.
Not only is Colorado 6-0 straight up in the last six against USC, the Buffaloes are also 5-1 against the spread in those games.
Neither of this season’s two previous meetings were close. Colorado won 80-62 on February 25th and took a 72-62 verdict on December 31st.
Trojans Survive Utah
The Trojans came perilously close to not even getting as far as the tournament semifinals. USC was required to double overtime in Thursday’s Pac-12 quarterfinals to survive a determined bunch of Utah Utes by a 91-85 count.
Seventh-seeded Utah (12-13) overcame a 10-point USC second-half lead to tie the score with 2.3 seconds left in regulation and force OT. In the first extra session, the Utes again rallied to knot the score with 24 seconds remaining.
Evan Mobley came up huge ins USC's double overtime win over Utah 😤 @evan_mobley7 pic.twitter.com/mkpl8mi4WU
— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) March 12, 2021
Evan Mobley stepped up for the Trojans in a big way to secure the victory. The 7-foot freshman bounced back from early foul trouble to score 13 of his 26 points during the overtime periods.
Mobley is the straw that stirs the drink for the Trojans. He turned an unprecedented conference triple play this season when he was the first player ever to be named Pac-12 Player of the Year, Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year in the same season.
Overcoming the Bears
The Buffaloes were also tested in the quarterfinals before finally finishing off the stubborn California Bears, 61-58. Cal held Buffs’ guard McKinley Wright IV, who’d been considered a Pac-12 POY contender, to just 10 points. Forward Evan Battey paced Colorado with 15 points.
In fact, it was Wright’s turnover with 11.5 seconds left in the second half that offered the Bears a chance to tie the game in the waning moments. Cal’s Makale Foreman attempted a 3-pointer with two seconds left for the tie, but missed the mark.
https://youtu.be/SY1kOaAexW8
The win over 11th-seeded Cal (9-20) was the fifth straight recorded by the 21-7 Buffaloes. Colorado shot just 38.5 percent from the field in the victory. The Buffs missed the first seven shots they attempted in the game. Wright began the game 1-for-7 from the field.
Trendspotting
Along with Colorado victories, another commonplace element to Buffaloes-Trojans encounters are low-scoring contests. Nine of their last 10 meetings have gone under. Overall, the under is 8-1 in Colorado’s last nine games.
USC has won three in a row, but the Trojans are 4-3 in their last seven games after opening the season 18-3. They are 1-4 ATS in their last five games.
#CUBuffs guard McKinley Wright IV was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team while forward Evan Battey earned honorable mention to the all-conference squad. Guard Eli Parquet was named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team and Jabari Walker earned a spot on the All-Freshman squad.
— Adam Munsterteiger (@adamcm777) March 9, 2021
Both Isaiah Mobley (47 minutes) and Tahj Eaddy (44 minutes) logged long nights in the double-OT effort against Utah, and could be sluggish with the quick turnaround for this game.
The Trojans have coughed up at least 71 points in four of the past seven games, twice allowing 80 or more points. They allowed 80 points in just one of their first 21 games this season.
Pick: Colorado Buffaloes -1.5 (-110).
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
