The USC Trojans will try to cover the spread at Galen Center on Saturday when they get a visit from the Minnesota Golden Gophers in NCAA basketball action.

The Trojans are 3-5 so far on the season, and 2-5 ATS vs. the number. The Golden Gophers, meanwhile, are 9-1 and 6-2 ATS. OVER/UNDER bettors have seen USC go 4-2 and the Golden Gophers go 4-1 on the totals.



View Minnesota vs USC Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Bettors looking to back visiting Minnesota before tip-off in this one found them as 6-point favorites over at Sportsbook earlier.

Power Rankings / Prediction:
This game matches up the No. 207 (Trojans) and the No. 12 (Golden Gophers) teams in the league, according to our current NCAAB power rank. A 84-64 result in favor of the Golden Gophers has been projected by the scores prediction engine.



How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up USC's No. 245 nationally ranked offense (64.2 points per game) against a Golden Gophers defense that sits as the No. 81 at 61 PPG. The Trojans have been averaging 41.5% from the field, less than the Golden Gophers have managed so far this season (47.9% on average).

Defensively, Minnesota features the nation's No. 144-rated defense on the road, allowing 68 points per game. USC, meanwhile, comes in at No. 263 nationally in scoring at home.

Minnesota won its last outing, an 88-64 result against South Dakota State on December 4. They covered in that game as a 15-point favorite. The Golden Gophers blew out South Dakota State on Tuesday, running up a 20+ point victory in an 88-64 win at Williams Arena.

In their last action, USC was a 75-67 loser on the road against New Mexico. They failed to cover the 7.5-point spread as underdogs. USC suffered a 75-67 loss against New Mexico on Wednesday, getting 14 points from Eric Wise in a losing effort at The Pit.


Minnesota Golden Gophers Trends:
When playing on Saturday are 7-3
Before playing North Dakota State are 4-0
After playing South Dakota State are 5-2
After a win are 8-2

USC Trojans Trends:
When playing on Saturday are 7-3
Before playing UC Riverside are 3-0
After playing New Mexico are 1-1
After a loss are 1-9

A few Golden Gophers at Trojans trends to consider:
Minnesota is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Minnesota is 7-0-1 ATS in its last 8 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Minnesota's last 7 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of USC's last 6 games
USC is 4-11 SU in its last 15 games at home
USC is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games
USC is 4-21 SU in its last 25 games


Next up:
Minnesota home to North Dakota State, Tuesday, December 11
USC home to UC Riverside, Saturday, December 15