SMU has bad memories of USC, since they lost to them in their meeting last November, 78-73, and was only able to shoot 41.5 percent from the floor.
Still, no team in the tournament probably has more momentum than the Mustangs. They ended one of the school’s best regular season basketball in style, as they are now winners of 16 straight games (13-2-1 ATS) and also in 26 of their last 27 after a suspect 4-3 start. Through the dominance, it pushed their price to win the national championship at +3,000.
In last week’s 71-56 victory in the AAC title game, they seemingly toyed with Cincinnati and held them to an ugly 31.1 percent shooting, while they themselves shot the ball well, including an efficient 10-for-19 shooting from beyond the arc.
Such performance has been a standard with SMU this season. With the leadership of Semi Ojeleye (18.8 PPG), Shake Milton (13.3 PPG, 4.5 APG), and Sterling Brown (13.1 PPG), the Mustangs dominated the AAC’s stat sheet by finishing as one of the top two scoring offenses and defenses in the conference.
In overall play, the great showing on both ends had them winning by an average of 14.7 points and opponents only shooting 38.4 percent from the floor.
Last night’s 75-71 victory over Providence showed why this team is worthy of an NCAA tournament berth. They played with great resiliency, as they outscored the Friars in the second half, 46-27, after trailing by as much as 17. It was also a sweet revenge for the Trojans, who got booted out by the same team in last year’s tourney.
The run, as you might have expected, was fueled by the team’s top three scorers – playmaker Jordan McLaughlin, swingman Bennie Boatwright, and dominant big Chimezie Metu – who collectively provided an effective presence inside and out. Boatwright, especially, had a big night, since the 24 points he scored were game and career-highs.
USC should be able to carry that momentum for Friday’s matchup. In the said win over SMU months back, they fired away 12 threes and hung 50 second half points. Boatwright’s four treys and 17 points in the contest led the team, as he was successful in picking up the slack left by the off-nights off McLaughlin and Metu.
The Trojans are 4-1 in their last five games (SU and ATS). They average a very respectable 78.7 PPG and also rank as the ninth-best shot blocking team in the nation.
