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JuJu Watkins and the No. 1-seed USC Trojans (28-3) open their 2025 NCAA Tournament quest against No. 16-seed UNC Greensboro (25-6) on Saturday at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California.
The Trojans and the Spartans clash for the right to face the winner of the California-Mississippi State first-round duel in the Round of 32.
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USC is coming off a five-point loss to UCLA in the Big Ten Women's Tournament final. On the other hand, UNC Greensboro completed a SoCon regular season-tournament double with a seven-point victory over Chattanooga in the SoCon Championship.
USC vs UNC Greensboro prediction
The USC Trojans opened the season with four straight wins before losing to Notre Dame in their fifth game. They fought back and strung up 15 straight wins, including 10 straight in the Big Ten Conference, to go 19-1 in their first 20 games.
JuJu Watkins and USC stumbled to Iowa in Caitlin Clark's jersey retirement which saw their 15-game winning streak snapped. The Trojans won their next seven games, including two straight against perennial rival UCLA, to take home the Big Ten regular season title in their first year in the conference.
The Lindsay Gottlieb-mentored team made it to the Big Ten Women's Tournament final and was stopped by UCLA in the final. USC was among the teams that received an at-large bid in the Women's March Madness 2025.
JuJu Watkins and Kiki Iriafen have led the Trojans' offense this season with the 6-foot-2 Sierra Canyon alumna averaging 24.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.2 steals and 1.9 blocks.
Iriafen, who transferred from Stanford, stood out to be USC's second option, tallying 18.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg and 1.9 apg. Freshman Kennedy Smith has been the team's third-best producer with averages of 9.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.1 apg and 2.1 spg.
Meanwhile, UNC Greensboro had a 9-5 start in its nonconference stint before going on a 15-1 tear in the Southern Conference regular season. The Trina Patterson-coached program strung up three more wins in the SoCon Tournament, including a 64-57 overtime win against Chattanooga to earn the regular season-tournament double and an automatic bid in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
The Spartans rely on Jayda Gamble, Nya Smith, Jaila Lee and Khalis Cain on both sides of the court. Gamble is the team's leading scorer, averaging 11.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 2.6 apg and 2.1 spg while Smith is the team's second option in the offense, tallying 11.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.0 apg and 1.0 spg.
Lee has averaged 9.6 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.5 apg and 1.4 spg while Cain is UNC Greensboro's top rebounder with 8.9 rpg to go along with 8.0 ppg and 1.4 blocks per contest.
The USC Trojans open as 31.5-point favorites, per March Madness 2025 betting picks and parlays. The total for this clash is 128.5 with the UNC Greensboro taking a moneyline of +3000 while USC is -25000.
Prediction: USC Trojans 80, UNC Greensboro Spartans 48.
USC vs UNC Greensboro odds
USC vs UNC Greensboro head-to-head
The 2025 NCAA Tournament first-round clash is the first time the Trojans and the Spartans are meeting in program history.
How to watch USC vs UNC Greensboro?
The USC-UNC Greensboro showdown will tip-off at 3 p.m. ET at the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California. ABC will provide the live TV coverage while Fubo will present the game via livestream.
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