Southern California @ Utah preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 30, 2020 ) Utah 52, Southern California 56

After opening a two-game road swing with a loss, USC has fallen off the pace in the race for a top-four finish in the Pac-12. The Trojans will try to regain some ground Sunday when they visit Utah.

Thursday’s 70-66 defeat at No. 17 Colorado not only dropped USC to sixth place in the Pac-12, but it also kept the Trojans from adding a strong check mark to their NCAA Tournament bubble resume. The top four finishers in the conference receive byes in the opening round of the Pac-12 Tournament, and USC entered the weekend a game behind Oregon and rival UCLA with four regular-season contests remaining. The good news is the final three games, including the season finale against the Bruins, will be at home for the Trojans, where they’re 11-2, including 5-1 in Pac-12 play. Utah, meanwhile, has dropped five of its last seven contests and enters Sunday in a two-way tie for eighth place in the conference.

TIME: 6 p.m. ET. TV: ESPNU

ABOUT USC (19-8, 8-6 Pac-12): The Trojans started fast Thursday, opening a 14-point first-half lead in Boulder, but couldn’t hold off the Buffaloes’ charge despite hitting 57.7 percent of their shots in the second half. Talented freshman forward Onyeka Okongwu returned from a two-game concussion absence to score a game-high 21 points and continues to pace the team with averages of 16.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per contest while shooting 61.7 percent from the field. A pair of seniors, guard Jonah Mathews (13.0 points) and forward Nick Rakocevic (11.3), also are averaging double figures for the Trojans, who rank second in the Pac-12 in field-goal percentage defense (38.9).

ABOUT UTAH (14-12, 5-9): The Utes have hit an offensive wall of late, failing to score more than 64 points in any of their last seven outings. The struggles were highlighted in Thursday’s 69-58 home loss to UCLA as Utah committed 16 turnovers, misfired on nine of 12 3-point attempts and saw their starting five combine for only 31 points. Forward Timmy Allen (team-leading 17.3 points, 7.2 rebounds) and freshman point guard Rylan Jones (10.3 points, team-high 4.7 assists) are the only two Utah players averaging double figures, and Allen has struggled of late, failing to reach his season scoring average in eight of his last nine outings.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Utah has won 10 of the last 13 meetings, but USC prevailed 56-52 in the season’s first meeting on Jan. 30 in Los Angeles.

2. Neither team shot better than 37.3 percent in that contest, but USC erased a nine-point second-half deficit and closed the game with a 25-12 run, with Rakocevic finishing with 16 points and 15 boards.

3. Utah ranks last in the conference in scoring defense (69.8 points) and 11th in field-goal percentage defense (43.8).

PREDICTION: USC 66, Utah 64