USC Basketball Bracketology: Trojans Average No. 8 Seed (1/23)

USC basketball’s projected NCAA tournament seed slipped following consecutive losses to UCLA and Oregon. The Trojans now average a No. 8 seed.

Last week, USC’s average seed was a 7.90, per BracketMatrix.com, which takes a look at each team’s bracketology based on a large collection of brackets from around the web.

Now the Trojans average seed is down to 8.79, following a 32-point loss to UCLA.

USC’s seed was always likely to slip during this stretch of three consecutive games against teams ranked in the nation’s Top 6, but the Trojans still have some work to do to ensure a place in the Big Dance.

The latest bracket projection from CBS Sports still lists the Trojans as a No. 7 seed, though that may change depending on the result against No. 4 Arizona on Thursday night. In CBS’s view, USC would face No. 10 seed Seton Hall.

Joe Lunardi’s bracket at ESPN has it reversed, with bubble-team USC sitting at a No. 10 seed and set to play No. 7 seed Maryland.

The Big Board at Yahoo! Sports dropped the Trojans from a No. 7 seed last week to a No. 9 this week.

Stewart Mandel’s latest for Fox Sports also saw USC drop a spot, from a No. 8 to a No. 9, facing Xavier in Salt Lake City.

However, CollegeSportsMadness.com kept the Trojans as is at the No. 7 seed with Arkansas as their opening opponent.

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Over at The Big Lead, Jason Lisk set USC as their top No. 8 seed.

Sports Illustrated’s Michael Beller posted USC as a No. 8 seed last week as well, but actually moved USC up into No. 7 seed status this week despite the loss to UCLA.

In his Bubble Watch column, Beller expanded on the Trojans tournament chances. Though he wouldn’t call them a lock, Beller argued, “with a pair of top-50 wins, a 5–6 record against the top 100, zero losses outside the top 100 and an RPI of 31, USC is on track for a relatively worry-free Selection Sunday.”

In order to stay worry-free, the Trojans must finish off the season as strongly as possible. Though they face an uphill battle against the Wildcats at the McKale Center, USC’s final three games of the regular season — against Arizona State, Washington State and Washington — are all winnable contests.