USC Women's Basketball: Trojans Superstar A Late-Game Scratch With Illness

Uh oh.

Your 12-1 USC Trojans will be missing the anchor of their defensive effort as they try to make up for the single solitary blemish on their 2023-24 NCAA season, in a bit of a bad break.

Per Luca Evans of The Orange County Register, 6'4" junior center Rayah Marshall is dealing with a lingering illness, and it's gotten so disabling she is not going to join JuJu Watkins, McKenzie Forbes and the rest of her comrades in today's just-begun home rematch against the 14-0 UCLA Bruins. 

UCLA, The Associated Press' second-ranked club in the country, beat USC, the AP's No. 9-ranked squad, to the tune of a 71-64 margin on December 30th.

Marshall, a Lynwood High School product, is averaging 13 points while shooting 51.3% from the field and 71.1% from the foul line, 10.5 rebounds, 2.4 blocks, and 1.7 assists across his 11 healthy contests. She's previously been named an All-Pac-12 and Pac-12 All-Defense honoree as a sophomore.

This is a major bummer. Beyond the stats, Marshall serves as the foundation of how USC protects the post.

Just over a few minutes into the ongoing game between these two national powerhouse clubs, UCLA leads by a mere possession, 4-2.