USC vs UCLA: How one can watch, preview, predictions for girls’s Huge Ten event ultimate

The Los Angeles Metropolis Championship, the Crosstown Showdown, the Battle of Los Angeles, no matter you wish to name the rivalry between the USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins, it’s occurring right this moment for the third time this season.

Nonetheless this time, it’s occurring practically 2,000 miles away in Indianapolis, Indiana on the Huge Ten event. It’s a matchup that has implications not just for who hoists the trophy after the sport, however NCAA event seeding and satisfaction of a whole metropolis.

Up to now this season, the Trojans have had the higher hand, defeating the Bruins twice throughout the common season, their first within the Huge Ten convention. In every of the 2 earlier matchups, USC entered the sport because the underdog, in keeping with the Related Press’ weekly ballot. This time, USC enters because the No. 2 group within the nation and No. 1 general seed within the convention event. UCLA is ranked fourth within the AP ballot group behind Texas, USC and UConn.

USC deleted UCLA twice within the common season. Trojans celebrity guard JuJu Watkins was every part you’d anticipate from a Nationwide Participant of the 12 months frontrunner. Within the first recreation, Watkins practically had a triple-double with 38 factors, 11 rebounds, 8 blocks and 5 assists in a 71-60 win on residence courtroom.

When the sport went to UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion, Watkins had 30 factors and 5 assists, main the Trojans to an much more spectacular 80-67 highway win to safe sole possession of the Huge Ten common season title.

Each losses to USC have weighed closely on the thoughts of head coach Cori Shut and the Bruins.

“You don’t have sufficient time for the issues which have been consuming me,” stated Shut about what went unsuitable towards the Trojans to this point this season.

UCLA will get one final likelihood to beat their crosstown rivals. To make the second extra necessary, the winner of Sunday’s event finale might decide who earns the No. 1 general seed in March Insanity, with the present No. 1 ranked Longhorns dealing with the South Carolina Gamecocks within the SEC event title recreation.

Within the newest NCAA event committee top-16 seed launch, UCLA was No. 1 with Texas and USC behind the Bruins in two and three. Since then, the Trojans beat the Bruins on the final day of the common season. Ought to the Gamecocks beat the Longhorns this afternoon, and the Trojans win, it might swing USC to the general No. 1 seed within the NCAA event and a barely simpler run of video games as a key profit.

Listed below are how the groups made it to the final day of the Huge Ten Match, learn how to watch and who’s favored:

How one can Watch

Date: Sunday, March. 9, 2025
Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
The place: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Tv: CBS
Stream: Paramount+

How USC received right here

Head coach Lindsay Gottlieb’s Trojans entered the event towards the No. 9 seeded Indiana Hoosiers and needed to face the sharpshooting aspect from an hour south of Indianapolis with out Huge Ten All-Defensive Crew ahead Rayah Marshall. USC scratched Marshall’s availability earlier than tipoff resulting from sickness. That meant the within recreation of the Trojans lacked certainly one of its key items.

Enjoying in entrance of a largely residence crowd, the Hoosiers went into halftime down 4 factors however got here out of the locker room because the aggressors. Indiana took solely three pictures from past the arc within the third quarter, as an alternative opting to go inside to use Marshall’s absence and it despatched Indiana to the road, lots.

Indiana went 10-of-10 from the free throw line and had a lead 5 minutes into the interval. USC pushed their lead again up however Indiana stored getting whistles and entered the fourth quarter down two factors. Nonetheless, USC lever gave that lead up within the fourth, incomes a spot within the semifinals.

Saturday was an excellent greater check for the Trojans, dealing with the No. 5 Michigan Wolverines, led by a trio of freshmen who play basketball years past their class. Guard Syla Swords is among the three and after lacking the primary recreation towards USC within the common season, Swords made up for misplaced time and led all scorers with 29 factors.

Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK by way of Imagn Photos

Defensively, Marshall returned however the Maize and Blue of Michigan had a singular deal with not letting Watkins beat them. Watkins is thought for locating area and attending to the rim and the Wolverines didn’t wish to let her even have time to learn the protection.

“We are saying not her greatest day as a result of she’s received three and 4 our bodies on her on a regular basis, and to nonetheless find yourself with 20 and 11,” stated Gottlieb.

Of Watkins’ 20 factors, 11 got here within the fourth quarter, which means Michigan’s plan was working for the primary half-hour of the sport. Nonetheless, the remainder of USC is fairly good too and stored with the aggressive assault of Michigan.

Ahead Kiki Iriafen led the Trojans with 25 factors and freshman guard Avery Howell added 11 factors. Within the fourth quarter, the Trojans pulled away to an eventual 82-70 victory.

How UCLA received right here

The Bruins had their challenges within the event too, no less than on Friday. UCLA confronted the No. 10 Nebraska Cornhuskers and the duo of freshman guard Britt Prince and senior heart Alexis Markowski.

UCLA’s 85-74 win was a narrative of two runs. Within the first quarter, the underdog Huskers hung with the No. 2 seeded Bruins till the ultimate two minutes of the quarter. That’s when Huge Ten Sixth Participant of the 12 months Janiah Barker received to the free throw line that started an eight-point run. Markowski broke the run with 1:03 left within the first quarter however UCLA constructed a 12-point lead off the run that brought about Nebraska to push even tougher.

Within the second quarter, Prince and Markowski mixed for 11 of Nebraska’s 22 factors and led a Cornhuskers assault that outscored the Bruins by eight within the interval. UCLA nonetheless had a lead at halftime, however by solely two factors.

The second run got here within the third quarter, with 4 gamers contributing to an eight-point run. On high of that run, 6-foot-7 heart Lauren Betts scored seven factors and grabbed 5 rebounds within the quarter and pulled away within the fourth quarter. Betts ended the day with a recreation excessive 28 factors with 13 rebounds and 5 assists.

Then, on Saturday, it was not a lot of a contest in any respect towards the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes. After ahead Cotie McMahon and Ohio State performed in a defensive battle late Friday night time, defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes 60-59, the Scarlet and Grey struggled mightily towards the Bruins.

Ohio State held Betts to no factors within the first quarter, however shot an abysmal 21.4 p.c, whereas the gamers round Betts went 10-of-14 from the ground to finish the primary quarter with a 22-8 lead.

It might worsen for the Buckeyes. By the tip of the third quarter, Ohio State was down by a program file 37 factors after half-hour. They have been additionally down freshman level guard Jaloni Cambridge, who rolled her ankle within the third quarter and McMahon, who appeared to harm her wrist falling on a rebound try. Neither made it again into the sport however it was already over anyway.

Picture by Michael Hickey/Getty Photos

The Buckeyes went on a 10-point run to finish the sport, however that simply made the loss look barely higher, nonetheless dropping 75-46. UCLA guard Londynn Jones scored 22 factors for the Bruins, practically a profession excessive. Jones led all scorers and went 6-of-12 from past the arc.

Odds

FanDuel has the UCLA Bruins as a +1.5 favourite to win, with an over/beneath set at 142.5 mixed factors.