The USC men’s basketball team is losing ground in the push for an NCAA Tournament berth. It could have gained a ton of ground had it finished off UCLA on Thursday, but a late two-point lead didn’t stand up. The Trojans allowed a 3-pointer with 14 seconds left and lost, 60-58. They didn’t get the centerpiece win they so badly needed in order to increase their odds of going to the Big Dance in March.
While USC lost on Thursday, Arizona State beat Washington State and Utah defeated Oregon State. Those two teams, the Sun Devils and Utes, have clearly better NCAA Tournament resumes than USC does at the moment. USC has to be able to change the trajectory of its own season, but it also has to rise above the Devils and Utes, and right now, that isn’t happening.
One thing to remember about NCAA Tournament berths is that they don’t emerge just because one team starts winning games; they are also a product of what other teams do. It is a study in moving parts. USC might need “X” number of wins, but if other teams keep winning, a team’s formula for entering the tournament can change. It might need to do more than previously thought.
With each ASU and Utah win, USC’s list of needs for the tournament gets longer, not shorter. The Trojans need more wins, not fewer. Their margin for error is smaller. We’ll see if Oregon — which very badly needs a win — can interrupt Utah’s momentum this weekend, and if Washington (which fell to Arizona by only three points) can trouble Arizona State.
[mm-video type=video id=01gp3t58h1dpq174ynxm playlist_id=none player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gp3t58h1dpq174ynxm/01gp3t58h1dpq174ynxm-e0cfcbfbd7ed82f59f302a7f5e9c89f6.jpg]
[listicle id=55259]