They’re rivals from the opposite sides of town — and the NCAA tournament bubble.
UCLA’s basketball team is likely in at the moment, saved by acoast-to-coast layupthat preserved anepic comeback.
USC is in afar more precarious spot, having somehow squandered a six-point lead in the final minute against one of the worst teams in the Big Ten.
But things can change quickly this time of year.
Should the Trojans prevail against the Bruins when the teams meet Tuesday night at Pauley Pavilion, their respective fortunes could flip.
As of his latest bracket projection Monday, ESPN analyst Joe Lunardi listed UCLA (18-9 overall, 10-6 Big Ten) as one of his last four teams to receive a bye, avoiding a dreaded play-in game.
USC? Lunardi had the Trojans (18-9, 7-9) as one of his first four teams out of the bracket. That made sense considering USC has lost three consecutive games in the wake of its home meltdown against Oregon on Saturday.
“I mean, our locker room’s crushed,” Trojans coach Eric Musselman told reporters afterward. “They knew what was at stake. You know, we win this game, we’re in a really good spot; we lose this game, we’re in a really tough, difficult spot. Somehow, we’ve got to try to regroup.”
Perhaps the Trojans can rally around having played their best basketball on the road. Five of their nine losses — including setbacks against Big Ten bottom feeders Oregon and Northwestern — have come at the Galen Center.
Meanwhile, USC logged one of the conference’s best road wins when it beat Wisconsin last month before nearly knocking off Ohio State in Columbus a few weeks ago.
Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos
