I'm not sure how USC managed to sneak into the NCAA Tournament. But the Trojans are here - and they should be faded in this first-round matchup against Providence.

The Friars are adept at slowing teams down and have two super players in guard Kris Dunn and forward Ben Bentil. Dunn is in the discussion for best player in the country.

USC is young with two sophomores and a freshman starting with no seniors in the rotation. The Trojans last made the NCAA Tournament five years ago. Their roster lacks tournament experience. The Trojans' style is better suited for the more wide open Pac-12. Providence, though, has the savvy to take advantage of USC's inexperience and force a grind-out, half-court style of game. Dunn is a top defender and the Friars play tough zone defense. I expect the Trojans to react poorly to this forcing up bad shots and getting impatient.

This the Friars' third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. Providence is 13-3 ATS in its last 16 neutral site games. The Friars are road tested having won at Villanova, Butler and Creighton while knocking off Arizona in a neutral site setting. USC, by contrast, lost at Cal, Stanford, Arizona, Oregon and Oregon State. Three of those defeats were by 15 or more points.