On the bright side, JuJu Watkins carved out her notch in women’s basketball history on Sunday, when she passed Iowa legend Caitlin Clark for the most points scored through two seasons of an NCAA women’s career. Clark had scored 1,662 points as a freshman and sophomore, and Watkins passed that in the first half of the Trojans’ Big Ten championship matchup against UCLA.
In all, Watkins scored 29 points, running her record scoring mark now to 1,683 points in her first two seasons.
Alas, USC entered the game in Indianapolis as the Big Ten’s No. 1-seeded team, and 2.5-point favorites over the crosstown rival Bruins. And despite the prolific scoring from Watkins, who averages 24.5 points per game for USC, the Bruins overcame an early Trojans lead and stifled USC late in the game to pull off a 72-67 upset.
USC took a 48-35 lead with 9:47 to go in the third quarter. But they scored just six points for the remainder of the period, allowing UCLA to get back into the mix, cutting the lead to 54-52 heading into the fourth.
Watkins’ rather blunt assessment:
“We struggled in the second half.” No arguments there. Watkins struggled, too, despite the point total. She shot just 9-for-28, with five turnovers on the game.
“We’re always positive …” Watkins said. “We came out with the right energy. I just don’t think our shots were falling, and we tried to get it back, but we couldn’t.”
JuJu Watkins doesn't miss a beat and goes coast-to-coast for another bucket 🤩@Jujubballin x @USCWBB pic.twitter.com/7RHxAfbcsH
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) March 9, 2025
So UCLA will take the Big Ten crown. The Bruins are 30-2 on the season, with both losses having come at the hands of USC during the regular season. USC falls to 28-3, and is still in good position — along with UCLA — to be granted a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Those seedings will be announced next Sunday, March 16.
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