USC Women's Basketball: Trojans Superstar Stuns Lindsay Gottlieb

"She's something else," the head coach raves.

Your USC Trojans submitted perhaps their most impressive game of the season yesterday in holding off the previously undefeated UCLA Bruins, per Thuc Nhi Nguyen of The Los Angeles Times. 

USC pulled off a surprise upset victory, 73-65, behind 32 points from freshman standout JuJu Watkins on 8-of-22 shooting from the field and a stellar 16-of-16 shooting from the charity stripe, along with 10 rebounds, three dishes, three steals and three blocks in 37 minutes of action.

“She’s a winner,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said of freshman JuJu Watkins. “She just goes all out all the time, puts her body and emotional spirit on the line. … She’s something else.”

This marks the 6'2" wing's sixth 30+ point game of the year, further extending her school record of such nights. She's the second highest-scoring player in the nation, as her 26.5 points per game average trails only Iowa senior Caitlin Clark's 30.9 per.

With All-Pac-12 junior center Rayah Marshall out sick, 6'6" junior reserve Clarice Akunwafo drew the start in the middle, scoring five points on a modest 2-of-2 shooting and pulling down seven rebounds.

Beyond Watkins, only two other USC players scored in double figures: guards McKenzie Forbes and Kayla Padilla. Forbes scored 18 points on an inefficient 6-of-16 shooting from the floor (3-of-5 from long range), plus 3-of-5 shooting from the foul line. She also added four boards, four dimes, and two steals. Padilla scored 13 points while shooting 4-of-7 from the floor. The 5'9" Torrance native also chipped in three swipes, four rebounds and two assists.