USC vs Long Beach State Betting Preview
Sportsmemo college basketball analyst Kyle Kargel gives his USC vs Long Beach State predictions tipping off from the Galen Center in Los Angeles. Both teams rank top 100 nationally in fastest length of possession on offense.
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USC vs Long Beach State Betting Odds
Wednesday, December 14 | College Basketball Betting Notes |
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Point Spread: | USC Trojans -12 vs Long Beach State Beach |
Total: | 145.5 Points |
Game Time: | 11:00pm ET / 8:00pm PT |
Arena: | Galen Center in Los Angeles, CA (Odds Above by DraftKings) |
TV: | Pac 12 Network |
USC vs Long Beach State Analysis
USC finally seems to have things going right riding three straight wins after losing back-to-back games to Tennessee and Wisconsin.
Sure they’ve only covered one of their last three games but that’s better than what Long Beach State has done their last three games going 1-2.
Their win was an outright 20-point win as 1.5-point favorites against Vermont but their most recent 76-74 loss against Sacramento State came with the Beach listed as a 1.5-point favorite. Can the Beach survive against USC tonight sitting as a 12-point underdog? Let’s dive in.
Beach Barely Shoot 3-Pointers
If there are two things to know about Long Beach State it’s that they love to play up-tempo but hate shooting three pointers. They rank dead last nationally in 3pt shots attempted per game.
To put it in perspective, they’re 2nd nationally in percentage of points from inside the arch and 357th nationally in percentage of points coming from 3pt land only making four 3pt shots per game!
It’s great the Beach excel inside but what hurts them is their free throw shooting only shooting 60% from the line as a team. Long Beach State is led by senior guard Joel Murray averaging 14.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 4.4 apg while also adding a couple steals per game as well.
He shoots 43% from the field but free throw shooting woes hold him back some only making 63% of his shots from the stripe.
Sophomore Jadon Jones is the x-factor for this team averaging 10 ppg while also adding a couple steals himself per game. If the Beach ever want to expand on their 3pt shooting it’ll have to come from him as he’s attempted and made the most 3pt shots on the team so far this season.
Trojans Love To Battle Down Low
The Trojans are ready for the Beach’s inside attack as on defense they rank 5th in 2pt field goal percentage allowed and 8th in block percentage. That defense down low is still led by Joshua Morgan who we’ve talked about before as he’s averaging 3.3 blocks per game.
They’re great as a team limiting effective shots as USC is 18th nationally in effective field goal percentage on defense.
Senior guard Boogie Ellis is the team’s leading scorer at 14.4 points per game but has only scored 18 total points in the team’s last three games which we stated were all victories. He’ll have to pick things back up tonight if the Trojans want a chance at covering the 12-point spread.
USC vs Long Beach State Prediction
Look for Ellis to get back on track for the Trojans and for them to cover the semi-large 12-point spread against the Beach tonight.
USC is flexible being able to play up-tempo or slow and in this case they’ll be playing fast with the Beach giving them enough possessions to cover and potentially hit the over 145 in this game too. USC has Auburn on deck in which they’ll use this game as preparation for that showdown.
Prediction: USC Trojans -12 (Sprinkle On Over 145.5)
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College Basketball Stat Sheet
GoldSheet prepares a daily college basketball stat sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Wednesday’s sheet, with notes on tonight’s USC vs Long Beach State contest.
Happy Hour Tip-Off Show
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The Happy Hour Tip-Off Show will broadcast Monday through Friday at 1:45pm ET / 10:45am PT. Pull up a barstool and join us as we break down tonight’s college basketball card, including possibly this USC vs Long Beach State clash, from a sports betting perspective.
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Track the college basketball point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Thursday’s college basketball games, including this USC vs Long Beach State showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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