Four Southern California teams will begin play Friday night in the men’s and women’s NCAA basketball tournaments.
They include both the men’s and women’s teams representing Cal Baptist in Riverside and UCLA. The USC women’s team also takes the court this weekend in the opening round.
Here’s what to know.
UCLA Bruins v. University of Central Florida Knights
The seventh-seeded UCLA Bruins (23-11, 15-8 Big Ten) play in the first round of the men’s NCAA Tournament against the No. 10-seed UCF Knights (21-11, 10-10 Big 12). Tipoff is scheduled for 4:25 p.m. California time.
Tyler Bilodeau averages 2.1 made 3-pointers per game for the Bruins, scoring 17.6 points while shooting 46.4% from beyond the arc. Donovan Dent is averaging 13.5 points, 7.5 assists and 1.6 steals over the last 10 games.
Riley Kugel is shooting 39.2% from beyond the arc with 1.9 made 3-pointers per game for the Knights, while averaging 14.4 points. Themus Fulks is averaging 14.5 points and six assists over the past 10 games.
Cal Baptist Lancers vs. Kansas Jayhawks
Cal Baptist (25-8, 15-5 WAC), a 13 seed, faces college basketball powerhouse and No. 4-seeded Kansas (23-10, 13-7 Big 12) in the first round of the men’s tournament. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. in San Deigo. Kansas, the is No. 17 in the country.
Melvin Council Jr. is averaging 12.9 points and 5.1 assists for the Jayhawks. Darryn Peterson is averaging 16.8 points over the last 10 games.
Dominique Daniels Jr. is scoring 23.1 points per game with 3.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists for the Lancers. Jayden Jackson is averaging 11.1 points and 3.2 rebounds while shooting 32.7% over the past 10 games.
UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez, fresh off helping the Bruins win the Big Ten tournament title, is embracing her final March Madness run with a tight-knit team and family inspiration from her brother Miami Heat forward Jaime Jaquez Jr.
UCLA Bruins v. Cal Baptist Lancers
In the women’s tournament, the No. 2 UCLA Bruins (31-1, 21-0 Big Ten) and Cal Baptist Lancers (23-10, 17-3 WAC) meet in the opening round. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Pauley Pavilion.
Lauren Betts is shooting 56.2% and averaging 16.4 points for the top-seeded Bruins. Kiki Rice is averaging 15.9 points over the last 10 games.
Lauren Olsen is scoring 15.1 points per game and averaging 2.8 rebounds for the 16th-seeded Lancers. Barros is averaging 14.7 points and 10.9 rebounds over the last 10 games.
USC Trojans v. Clemson Tigers
Looking ahead to the weekend, USC (17-13, 9-10 Big Ten) faces Clemson Tigers (21-11, 12-8 ACC) in the opening round of the women’s hoops tournament. Tipoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. California time Saturday in Columbia, South Carolina.
Mia Moore is shooting 46.9% and averaging 13.5 points for the eight-seeded Tigers. Rusne Augustinaite is averaging 9.4 points over the last 10 games.
Jazzy Davidson is scoring 17.6 points per game with 5.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists for the Trojans, seeded at No. 9. Kara Dunn is averaging 15.1 points and 5.3 rebounds over the past 10 games.