March Madness odds: USC vs. UCLA

2008 ncca tournament bracket
2008 ncca tournament schedule
NCAA tournament bracket


There may be no more talent on any floor in the country tonight than during the rubber match in the battle of L.A. as USC takes on UCLA in the Pac-10 tournament semifinals, with the Bruins 8.5-point betting favorites at WagerWeb.com.

There's probably nothing much tangible on the line Friday night: Both teams are in the tournament, although USC could improve its seeding, and the Bruins are pretty much a lock for the No. 1 seed in the West.

But this is for bragging rights of Los Angeles, in addition to the fact that UCLA and USC have never faced each other in the 10 previous editions of the Pac-10 tournament.

"Everybody knows what the stakes are," UCLA guard Darren Collison said. "We're trying to get the No. 1 seed. They're trying to get a better seed. ... 'SC's looking forward to it and so are we. We split the series, so both teams want to win this game not only for the tournament but also for bragging rights."

USC shocked UCLA at Pauley Pavilion, 72-63, in January, with freshman Davon Jefferson scoring a career-high 25 points, including the final eight in a 21-6 Trojan run that nailed down the game. The Bruins won last month's rematch at USC, 56-46, forcing 22 USC turnovers and winning despite 33.9 percent shooting. The Trojans' O.J. Mayo was held to a season-low four points and committed a season-high 10 turnovers.

Sixth-ranked Texas and Washington are the only other teams to beat UCLA, while USC hasn't lost since that Bruins game.

The Trojans got to the Pac-10 semis with a 59-55 win over Arizona State in the quarters, outrebounding a seventh consecutive opponent, a notable achievement for a team that was outrebounded in 11 of its first 12 Pac-10 games.Forwards Jefferson and Taj Gibson had nine rebounds apiece for USC, which outrebounded Arizona State, 36-26.

Mayo led fourth-seeded USC with 23 points and six assists against the Sun Devils. The Trojans trailed by seven with 9:35 remaining, but rallied to win for the sixth time in seven games.

Mayo is averaging 25.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in that seven-game stretch, while connecting on 28 of his 48 3-point attempts (58.3 percent).

UCLA put on a strong performance against Cal in Thursday's tournament quarterfinals. Junior guard Darren Collison had 19 points with five 3-pointers as the top-seeded Bruins went 14-for-25 from behind the arc in an 88-66 rout. The Bruins, who had ranked ninth in the conference in 3-point shooting, made 14 of 25 from long range with two misses coming from substitutes in the final, meaningless minutes.

Bruins freshman Kevin Love has scored in double figures in every game and averaged 16.4 points and 10.1 rebounds during the Bruins' eight-game win streak.

The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between No. 11 Stanford and 21st-ranked Washington State in the championship game Saturday.