USC Trojans at Minnesota Golden Gophers

TALE OF THE TAPE

Minnesota Golden Gophers USC Trojans Record 10-5 ← 12-3 NET Ranking #62 → #48 KenPom Ranking #59 → #57 Home Record 9-0 ← N/A Road Record N/A → 2-2 Key Injuries Vaihola (OUT) Rice (OUT)

Gary's Take I've seen some ugly road trips in my thirty years, but what's happening to Eric Musselman's squad right now is a certified tailspin. The Trojans are limping into Minneapolis for the final leg of a three-game Midwest swing, and the wheels haven't just come off—they've been left somewhere on the highway in East Lansing. After getting run out of the gym by Michigan and Michigan State, USC now has to deal with the most unique environment in the Big Ten: the elevated floor at Williams Arena. For a team that has Coughed up the rock 38 times in their last two games, playing on a stage where the benches are in a pit and the court is a literal pedestal is a recipe for a turnover disaster.

Minnesota is the exact wrong matchup for a reeling team. Niko Medved has the Gophers playing at a glacial pace, ranking 341st in the country in tempo, which is the ultimate protection for their thin seven-man rotation. While USC wants to use their length and athleticism to create chaos, they won't find it here. Minnesota is the most disciplined team in the conference when it comes to ball security, averaging just ten turnovers a game. They aren't going to give USC the transition buckets they desperately need to offset their half-court scoring droughts. Without Rodney Rice, the Trojans' offense has looked completely lost, plummeting to a measly 51 points in their last outing.

Then you have Cade Tyson. The kid is a flat-out pro, averaging nearly 22 points a night and shooting the lights out from deep. USC's perimeter defense has been porous on the road, and I expect Tyson to feast on the wings tonight. While I respect Musselman's ability to get his teams to the free-throw line, that's a high-variance way to live on the road in a building where the home team hasn't lost all season. The Gophers are playing with house money after upsetting Iowa, and 'The Barn' will be rocking. I'm laying the small number with the team that knows how to protect their home floor. Take Minnesota -3.5.