Two-seed Michigan State Spartans and 10-seed University of Southern California Trojans will do battle in the second-round of the Midwest Regional of the 2009 NCAA Tournament in Minneapolis, Minn., on Sunday with tip-off set for approximately 5 p.m. ET. NCAA Tournament Odds experts expect this to go to the wire.
NCAA Tournament Odds experts at online super-sportsbook BetUS.com favor Michigan State over the Trojans by a 4-point chalk with a 129 1/2 total. The Spartans are -175 favorites on the BetUS moneyline while USC backers are getting +155 moneyline odds.
The No. 8-ranked Spartans are 27-6 and coming off a 77-62 win over Robert Morris in the NCAA first-round game held Friday in Minneapolis, Minn. MSU won the Big Ten regular season title before losing to Ohio State, 82-70, in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals. MSU has been to 12 straight NCAA Tournaments. The Spartans are led in scoring by sophomore guard Kalin Lucas who has averaged 14.7 points per game. MSU led the country entering the NCAA Tournament in rebound margin with a +9.9 rebound advantage per game.
USC advanced to the second-round to face the Spartans on the virtue of its 72-55 first round victory over Boston College on Friday. The Trojans outscored Boston College 42-21 in the second half to come back from a four-point halftime deficit to win.
Taj Gibson was a perfect 10-for-10 from the field to finish with 24 points and six rebounds. Dwight Lewis added 20 points and DeMar DeRozan 18 points for USC. The Trojans shot 52.9 percent from the field, while holding BC to 32.7 percent shooting, 23.1 percent in the second half.
