Devils in Detail
Fansided

ASU Basketball: 2018 Pac-12 Tournament Preview

By Trevor Booth

TEMPE, AZ - DECEMBER 19: Head coach Bobby Hurley of the Arizona State Sun Devils reacts in a huddle during the second half of the college basketball game against the Longwood Lancers at Wells Fargo Arena on December 19, 2017 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
TEMPE, AZ - DECEMBER 19: Head coach Bobby Hurley of the Arizona State Sun Devils reacts in a huddle during the second half of the college basketball game against the Longwood Lancers at Wells Fargo Arena on December 19, 2017 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 9
Next
TUCSON, AZ – FEBRUARY 10: Dusan Ristic #14 of the Arizona Wildcats and Chimezie Metu #4 of the USC Trojans fight for an offensive rebound during the first half of the college basketball game at McKale Center on February 10, 2018 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
TUCSON, AZ – FEBRUARY 10: Dusan Ristic #14 of the Arizona Wildcats and Chimezie Metu #4 of the USC Trojans fight for an offensive rebound during the first half of the college basketball game at McKale Center on February 10, 2018 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) /

No. 2 USC vs. No. 7 Washington/No. 10 Oregon State

Who would’ve thought the Trojans would be here?

Following a head-scratching 9-4 start to the season, it looked like USC’s 2018 campaign would be doomed. De’Anthony Melton had been ruled ineligible to start the season, and injury woes to Bennie Boatwright kept him in and out of the lineup until knee issues ended his season.

However, after both a six-game win streak and a four-game win streak in Pac-12 play, the Trojans have managed to turn their season around and deliver on their preseason ranking with a No. 2 seed in the conference tournament.

Chimezie Metu and Jordan McLaughlin led the Trojans on Pac-12 award night, as each received All-Pac-12 First Team honors leading into this week’s tournament.

In their first matchup, the Trojans will face either No. 7 Washington or No. 10 Oregon State at 7 p.m. MST Thursday.

More from Devils in Detail

USC lost their only matchup against the Huskies in their conference opener at home, while they defeated Oregon State twice in the regular season.

If the Trojans were to run into the Huskies again, they’d be facing a team that has lost five of their last eight games since pulling off back-to-back upsets against Arizona State and Arizona in Seattle.

However, that wouldn’t be their focus.

In Washington’s 88-81 win over USC Dec. 29, the Trojans had no answer for the Huskies’ hot offense. Noah Dickerson, Jaylen Nowell and Matisse Thybulle combined for 47 points on 20-of-29 shooting, negating a combined 50 points from Metu and Boatwright on the other end.

In the Pac-12 debut of Mike Hopkins‘ Syracuse-oriented 2-3 zone, the Huskies limited the Trojans to just 3-of-20 (15 percent) shooting from the 3-point line, making the Trojan guards often uncomfortable on the perimeter.

If they were to draw the Huskies again, USC would definitely have to key in on making outside shots and finding a scorer outside of Metu.

On the other hand, Oregon State would present USC with a much more favorable matchup.

In their two wins over the Beavers, the Trojans dominated the defensive side of the ball, limiting OSU to just 21.1 percent from the 3-point line while forcing a combined 26 turnovers.

One thing that USC would have to address in that potential matchup would be limiting Tres Tinkle‘s offensive impact. He averaged 18.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in the two games, allowing the Beavers to remain close through each first half.

With their NCAA Tournament hopes up in the air, the Trojans would likely need to secure this victory in order to secure an at-large bid.

Home/ASU Basketball