Minnesota is in Southern Cal to take on the Trojans, here are the keys to a Gopher win
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Southern Cal
3:00 PM
BTN
USC
And we hit the road to visit our Big Ten rivals in Southern California.
USC Trojans
Record: 14-10 (6-7)
KenPom Rank: 56
Can the Gophers upset the Trojans on the road? Eric Musselman is in his first season at USC after having some success at Arkansas. Typically known for having tough defensive teams, this Trojan squad is not exactly getting it done on defense.
KEYS TO A GOPHER WIN
Attack the rim – USC does not defend inside the 3-point arc very well and the Gophers might have a decent size advantage. Minnesota needs to attack the rim from the perimeter AND they need to pound it inside. I expect Garcia has a lot of points around the rim this afternoon.
REBOUND – We are not a great rebounding team, but neither is USC. Whichever team is able to overcome their tendency to give up rebounds, may be the team that wins. This is a key stat to watch.
Defend the three – USC is a good shooting team from deep, shooting over 36% from three in Big Ten play. Chibuzo Agbo and Wesley Yates can be dangerous. This is another area where Minnesota is not particularly strong, but needs to be a focus today.
PREDICTION
I do think that this is one of our few, remaining opportunities for a win. USC is not exactly dominant, but they have been pretty consistent about beating the teams they should and losing to the teams they should lose to.
I suspect they will make plenty of threes while Minnesota feeds Garcia a LOT. Depends on how much of the load Garcia can carry and if someone else steps up to help.
Minnesota – 71
USC – 75