Mississippi State women's basketball is on to the second round of the 2025 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. After an impressive win over Cal on Saturday, the Bulldogs will now take on 1-seed and host USC, led by megastar JuJu Watkins. Here's how to watch plus some notes on the matchup...
What time is Mississippi State playing USC?
You might want to get the coffee ready to stay up for this one. Mississippi State will be in late night action against USC. Their second round NCAA Tournament matchup is set to tipoff at 9:00 PM CT, 7:00 PM local time in Los Angeles, on Monday, March 24. Can we still ceremonially call this "Pac-12 After Dark" even though the Trojans are in the Big Ten?
What channel is the Mississippi State vs USC game on?
The Bulldogs and Trojans get the big stage for this game. Their clash will air on ESPN. Streaming will be available through the ESPN app. FuboTV will have Monday night's action, as well as all the great games of March Madness, and offers a free trial.
Mississippi State Bulldogs vs USC Trojans point spread
The oddsmakers are giving Mississippi State some bulletin board material in this one, as the Bulldogs are significant underdogs to the Trojans Monday night. USC is a 16.5-point favorite according to DraftKings Sportsbook as of Monday morning. For some context of the expectation here, Mississippi State is +1300 on the moneyline while the Trojans are -2800. The Over/Under is set to 146.5.
How did Mississippi State and USC perform in the first round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament?
As you'd expect, the 1-seed Trojans pummeled 16-seed UNC Greensboro in the first round on Saturday. USC got off to a sluggish start offensively but completely shut down their opponent and rolled to a 71-25 win. JuJu Watkins had 22 points and eight rebounds. 9-seed Mississippi State used a dominant defensive effort to pull away from 8-seed Cal in a 59-46 win. The Bulldogs forced 24 turnovers, and center Madina Okot led the way with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Mississippi State Bulldogs vs USC Trojans score prediction
USC is really, really good. They're an elite defensive team and have a prolific scorer leading them in Watkins. Overall, Mississippi State is outmatched here. But the Bulldogs have proven to be up for big games under Sam Purcell, and I'd expect they challenge the Trojans for at least three quarters.
USC wins 68-59