Two Pac-12 Games Rated as the Most Exciting Sweet 16 Matchups

The Pac-12 may not be getting the credit it deserves for its success in the NCAA tournament, but two of the three Sweet 16 games involving Pac-12 teams were cited by Sports Illustrated writers as the two most exciting matchups of this weekend's games.

SI writer Wilton Jackson picked the UCLA-Alabama game as the one to watch in his comments in the video above, while colleague Ben Pickman selected the all-Pac-12 battle between USC and Oregon as the most exciting contest of the Sweet 16.

Both those games will be played Sunday, while Oregon State, the other Pac-12 team in the Sweet 16, will play a Saturday game against Loyola-Chicago, which host Robin Lundberg hinted might be the most attractive game.

Let's take a look at the two "exciting" games involving Pac-12 teams.

No. 11 seed UCLA (20-9) vs. No. 2 seed Alabama (26-6)

Jackson ends his analysis of the UCLA-Alabama game with this comment:

"If Alabama doesn't knock down the three-ball against UCLA in that game, it could spell trouble for the Crimson Tide, so UCLA could potentially be getting ready for a big upset."

Indeed SEC regular-season and conference tournament champion Alabama is an outstanding three-point shooting team, and its success depends on making a high percentage of them.

Alabama has attempted 961 three-point shots this season, which is more than 100 more attempts than any other Division I team. The Tide has also made more three-point shots than any other Division I team, hitting 341 of them.

The Tide is making 35.5 percent of its long-range shots, which is good but not great, and three of its losses came when it did not shoot well from beyond the arc. Alabama was just 7-for-26 (26.9%) from deep in the 73-71 home loss to Western Kentucky; it was a miserable 3-for-23 (13.6%) in a 64-56 loss to Clemson, and in the game Pac-12 folks point to, the Tide was just 7-for-29 (24.1%) in an 82-64 loss to the Cardinal.

So it will be up the Bruins to shut down Alabama's long-range game, and that might be problem because UCLA's three-point defense is mediocre. Bruin opponents make 34.2% of their deep shots, which ranks eighth in the Pac-12 and 212th (of 340 Division I teams) in the nation.

No. 6 seed USC (24-7) vs. No. 7 seed Oregon (21-6)

The top two finishers in the Pac-12 will meet for the second time this season, to which SI's Ben Pickman says, "Bill Walton is smiling and who knows what else he is doing while he's smiling."

Pickman expects viewers to be smiling too, because he calls it "a matchup of teams that are playing really, really well, especially on the offensive side. Look out for a great high-powered offensive showing."

Pickman is basing his assessment on the fact that Oregon scored 95 points in the second-round win over Iowa, while the Trojans poured in 85 points against a Kansas team that had not yielded more than 66 points in regulation time any of its final nine games before the NCAA tournament.

But there are two things Pickman overlooked in predicting an offensive showcase:

1. USC is fourth in the nation in field-goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to make just 38.7 percent. That includes limiting Kansas to 51 points and 29% shooting.

2. Oregon scored only 58 points in the Ducks' 72-58 loss to USC in Los Angeles back on Feb. 22. And this was not one of the games in which the Ducks were short-handed as Will Richardson, Chris Duarte and LJ Figueroa were all in the Oregon starting lineup that day. In fact, the only notable absence was USC's Isaiah Mobley, who was out with a calf injury. The older Mobley brother has been outstanding in the NCAA tournament, averaging 16.0 points while hitting 5-of-7 three-point shots over the first two games.

In that earlier-USC-Oregon matchup, the Trojans burst out to a 17-1 lead, led by 23 points late in the first half and never let the Ducks in the game.

Two ESPN writers are hoping for a USC victory and an Elite Eight matchup against Gonzaga on Tuesday because of the enticing individual matchups that game would present.

Myron Medcalf, ESPN senior college basketball writer:

I think the potential Elite Eight matchup between USC and Gonzaga would present a rare opportunity to see a pair of projected top-five draft picks matched up against each other with a trip to the Final Four on the line. It's also an incredible showcase for both players.

Some folks were asleep as USC's Evan Mobley earned Pac-12 Player of the Year honors and Gonzaga's Jalen Suggs put together a freshman season to earn a slot on the Associated Press All-America second team. But the potential Tuesday meeting in the Elite Eight between the two players is a pivotal pairing and a preview for what an NBA team with a high pick might get this summer when it selects one of the talents. Plus, it could be a good game, perhaps the first time Gonzaga gets pushed. You would think that a team would have to possess the ability to protect the rim and get second-chance opportunities, and USC has held opponents to a 41.4% clip inside the arc, the No. 1 mark in America, per KenPom. It's top-15 in offensive rebounding percentage. Mobley vs. Suggs is a gigantic potential matchup.

Jeff Borzello, ESPN college basketball insider:

I think the best potential head-to-head matchup would be Mobley vs.[Gonzaga's] Drew Timme in the regional final. Mobley is arguably the best defensive player in the country, and Timme is one of the best post players in college basketball on the offensive end. Timme has elite footwork and finds angles and spaces on the block, enabling him to outmaneuver his opponent in the paint and get a basket. He's skilled, he can make face-up shots, he can pass effectively. But Mobley is unlike anyone he's faced all season. Mobley is long, can guard inside and out, is an elite shot-blocker and, as one coach told me, can contest two shots back-to-back better than anyone he's seen. Gonzaga relies heavily on its ability to score in the paint and finish at the rim, but USC will really put that to the test.

Cover photo of UCLA's Tyger Campbell is by Patrick Gorski, USA TODAY Sports

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