NCAA Basketball Picks – Golden Bears Desperate To End Streak

Following a two-game mini trip that extended their losing streak to three, the California Golden Bears will look to take advantage of consecutive home games beginning with a visit from the USC Trojans on Thursday.

NCAA basketball picks handicappers know that both teams sit just below the .500 mark in the PAC-10 standings, making this contest even more crucial with just five games left on the schedule. Here’s a sports betting preview:

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NCAA Basketball Picks: USC Trojans @ California Golden Bears

Thursday February 17, 2011 – 10:30 PM ET

Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, California

College Basketball Sports Betting Odds: USC +2, California -2

The Trojans haven’t been much better in recent weeks, and enter this game as losers in three of their past four. USC will play four of their final six games away from home, a tall task considering they have prevailed in just one of their last five road games.

NCAA Basketball Picks: What USC Has To Do To Win

Nikola Vucevic leads the Trojans in both scoring and rebounding with averages of 16.9 and 10.1 respectively, but will need much more support from his teammates if USC is going to have any chance of finishing their PAC-10 schedule near the .500 mark.

Losers of three of their past four, the Trojans really struggled in a 61-51 home loss to Oregon their last time out, with Vucevic the only player in red to hit double figures in scoring. The team’s only star has overcome double and even triple teams all season, but it could begin to wear on him down the stretch, particularly with so many games away from home.

USC allowed the Ducks to hit 42.9 percent of their three-point shots, and will need to tighten up drastically on the perimeter to have any chance of keeping this one close.

NCAA Basketball Picks: What California Has To Do To Win

The Golden Bears show little life in consecutive losses to Washington and Washington State, and the crowd at Haas Pavilion is expecting a much better effort when they return home on Thursday. California allowed five different Cougars to hit double figures in their most recent loss, a 75-71 defeat at Washington State.

Jorge Gutierrez managed 19 second-half points to spark a Golden Bears rally, and if he can carry over that momentum to this game then California will be looking good. Harper Kamp and Jeff Powers also reached double figures in the loss, but they will need to do a better job of moving the ball around to keep possession and work for the open shot.

Betting Outlook & NCAA Basketball Picks

The Golden Bears have lost three in a row, and can only go so long before finally breaking out of their slump. There may not be a better team to do it against than a Trojans’ squad that has been very inconsistent this season. This game should go down to the wire with Vucevic keeping USC close, but in the end the edge will go to the home team.

NCAA Basketball Betting Picks: California -2