Cal State Northridge Matadors vs USC Trojans Prediction, 12/18/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Cal State Northridge Matadors vs USC Trojans

Date: Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Location: Galen Center in Los Angeles, CA

TV: BTN

Galen Center is the site where the USC Trojans (7-4) will try to beat the Cal State Northridge Matadors (7-3) on Wednesday.

The Cal State Northridge Matadors faced off with Cal Poly and earned the victory with a final of 102-91 in their last contest. Cal State Northridge finished the game having earned a 50.0% field goal percentage (37 of 74) and buried 8 of their 14 3-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Matadors converted 20 of 29 attempts for a rate of 69.0%. In reference to rebounding, they compiled 44 with 18 of them being offensive. They also doled out 18 assists for this contest in addition to forcing the other team into 17 turnovers and earning 11 steals. In terms of the defense, Cal State Northridge allowed 41.4% from the field on 29 out of 70 shooting. Cal Poly doled out 19 dimes and had 9 steals for the contest. Moreover, Cal Poly collected 35 rebounds (12 offensive, 23 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Cal Poly finished 70.0% at the free throw line by converting 21 of 30 attempts. They knocked down 12 of 43 tries from 3-point land. In reference to personal fouls, the Matadors ended up finishing with 21 while Cal Poly finished the game with 25 personal fouls.

PJ Fuller II is a player who came through for the contest. He totaled 22 points on 6 of 14 shooting. He saw the court for 30 mins and also collected 4 boards. He finished the game shooting 42.9% from the floor and totaled 7 dimes.

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Cal State Northridge steps onto the court with a win-loss mark of 7-3 for the season. They lose possession by turning the ball over 14.3 times per game and as a team they are committing 20.3 personal fouls per contest. As a team, Cal State Northridge is grabbing 41.5 boards per game and is sitting with 162 assists on the season, which ranks 131st in college in terms of passing the ball. The Matadors are shooting 35.4% on shots from distance (69 of 195) and 70.4% from the charity stripe. They average 82.1 points per outing (55th in the country) while going 47.5% from the field.

On the defensive end of the court, the Matadors have forced 15.2 turnovers every game while drawing 20.2 fouls. They are giving up 30.5% on shots from beyond the arc and they are 192nd in Division 1 in points per game allowed (71.4). The Matadors are giving up a shooting percentage of 37.5% (214 of 571) and they relinquish 33.2 rebounds per game as a group. They currently rank 129th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 128 surrendered for the season.

The last time they took the court, the USC Trojans walked away with a victory by a final of 89-63 when they faced Montana State. With respect to team rebounding, USC allowed Montana State to collect 23 in all (4 offensive). They finished 22.7% from three-point range by shooting 5 out of 22 and finished the contest at 18 of 25 at the free throw line (72.0%). The Trojans allowed Montana State to knock down 20 of 61 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 32.8% for this game. In all, the Trojans finished 32 out of 63 from the field which had them sitting at 50.8%. When talking about shots from beyond the arc, USC made 6 of 18 attempts (33.3%). They were able to knock down 19 of those for a percentage of 79.2%. Montana State committed 18 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Trojans to the free throw line for a total of 24 attempts. They turned the ball over 11 times, while getting 9 steals in this game. The Trojans were able to collect 33 defensive boards and 8 offensive rebounds for a total of 41 for the game.

Desmond Claude was important for the Trojans for this game. He made 6 of 8 for this contest giving him a field goal percentage of 75.0%, and had 6 rebounds. He racked up 19 points in his 27 mins on the court and accounted for 3 dimes for the matchup.

USC has a win-loss mark of 7-4 for the campaign. On the offensive side of the court, the Trojans are connecting on 47.8% from the floor, which has them ranked 74th in the country. USC has earned 821 points this season (74.6 per game) and they grab 31.8 rebounds per contest. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 15.5 times per game (100th in D-1) and they cough up possession 11.2 times per contest. The Trojans commit 17.6 personal fouls per contest and they go 74.7% from the charity stripe.

The USC defense surrenders 33.6% on 3-point shots (79 of 235) and their opponents are knocking down 73.6% of their shots from the charity stripe. They relinquish 14.5 assists and 32.5 boards per contest, which ranks them 285th and 90th in the nation. The Trojans on the defensive side of the court are 148th in college in points allowed per contest with 69.9. They are forcing 13.4 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 43.6% from the floor (212th in college hoops).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Cal State Northridge

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