On the highway, in a rival’s sold-out area, with the convention title and NCAA Event seeding implications on the road, the USC Trojans oozed confidence. Whilst they endured a number of gamers coping with foul hassle, even because the UCLA Bruins minimize the deficit to 2 possessions within the third quarter, Lindsay Gottlieb’s group by no means flinched.
The rationale why, it gave the impression to be, was as a result of they’d JuJu Watkins and their opponent didn’t.
On nationwide tv Saturday evening and in entrance of a crowd that included basketball royalty and celebrities – from Trojans’ legend Cheryl Miller to singer John Legend – USC captured the Huge Ten common season title in its first season within the league, defeating UCLA for the second time this 12 months, 80-67.
Powered by Watkins’ eye-popping stat line of 30 factors, three rebounds, 5 assists, two steals and three blocks, USC would be the No. 1 seed within the Huge Ten Event, which begins in Indianapolis subsequent week.
The win in all probability cements USC as a No. 1 seed within the NCAA Event as properly.
And for Watkins, in opposition to her essential competitors for the award in UCLA’s Lauren Betts, the victory and her efficiency in it probably cements her because the Nationwide Participant of the 12 months in ladies’s school basketball.
The 19-year-old sophomore, a local of Los Angeles who selected to remain house to assist restore the Trojans to prominence, began the sport off on an absolute heater. Watkins made three of her first 5 3-point makes an attempt, together with the sport’s opening factors which she scored by pulling up from the highest of the important thing, draining the deep shot as a Bruins’ defender closed in on her.
Late within the second quarter, Watkins confirmed off her elite mixture of handles, physique management and willpower as she drove towards the rim – taking UCLA’s Angela Dugalic alongside for the journey – and fought by way of a foul to sink a layup. A couple of moments later, after USC collected an offensive rebound, Watkins sank a second-chance 3-pointer to place the Trojans forward by 14 on the break.
At intermission, Watkins had 23 factors on 8-of-13 taking pictures and only a single turnover in 19 minutes of labor.
“She’s the perfect participant within the nation,” Gottlieb mentioned throughout her halftime interview on FOX. “I’m not shocked what she’s able to.”
In the meantime, Betts struggled within the first half, ending with simply 4 factors on 2-of-6 taking pictures. The 6-foot-7 junior typically did not get deep positioning within the paint, and when she did catch the ball inside vary, she was double-teamed and compelled to grapple with bodily defending by the Trojans. The referees didn’t present mercy, sending Betts to the road simply as soon as within the first half the place she missed each makes an attempt.
However whereas USC piled up factors within the first half, additionally they stacked up fouls too. Getting into the third quarter, Kiki Iriafen and Talia von Oelhoffen – the Trojans’ pair of prized offseason acquisitions – had three fouls apiece whereas Kennedy Smith and Rayah Marshall every had two. Watkins was the one participant to attain in double figures within the first half, and the circumstances that her fellow starters had discovered themselves in pressured her to proceed to hold the load within the last two frames.
And he or she didn’t disappoint.
UCLA trimmed the deficit to 4 factors halfway by way of the third quarter, however USC responded with a 7-0 run that was capped off with Watkins connecting on a fastbreak layup, stepping by way of Betts and one other defender on her option to the rim.
The sport appeared over when USC went on a 12-3 run early within the fourth quarter to go forward by 20 factors. However Watkins had yet one more highlight-worthy play in her bag. With teh contest primarily wrapped up – USC main by 17 factors with 1:04 to play – she didn’t give up, stuffing Gabriela Jacquez’s shot within the paint, then elevating her hand to level within the different path, letting it linger there to tell the Pauley Pavilion crowd that not solely did possession belong to the Trojans, however they have been about to rejoice a championship of their health club.
After her arm fell, Watkins flashed a smile and slapped arms with an ecstatic Miller, who was sitting courtside.
Watkins’ fingerprints have been throughout this win. She by no means appeared to rattle, by no means turned down a giant shot and by no means shied away from the second. It was one other instance of how Watkins appears to at all times play her greatest in essentially the most essential video games. Maybe none have been extra necessary to date this season than this one – a daily season finale between two AP-ranked prime 5 groups with a convention crown on the road – however that is merely what Watkins does when the lights are at their brightest.
Take into account that in opposition to 9 ranked opponents this season, Watkins is averaging 26.7 factors, 7.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.8 steals and three.1 blocks per recreation. Except for her steals (2.1 per recreation) all of these averages are larger than her complete per-game numbers throughout the season.
“Her expertise is off the charts,” Gottlieb mentioned throughout her postgame interview. “… She has stuff nobody can train.”
Betts completed with 11 factors and 11 rebounds. She didn’t appear to have a solution for the Trojans’ swarming protection, and he or she and her teammates by no means actually discovered decelerate Watkins – which has been the case for nearly each group USC has performed this season, except for Notre Dame and Iowa.
Watkins embraced the highlight and USC seized the chance. They’ve swept UCLA, dealing the Bruins their solely two losses of the season to date.
With the perfect participant within the sport main the best way, USC appears like a official contender for the nationwide title.
