USC’s JuJu Watkins chases the women’s basketball title with a loaded team

LOS ANGELES — When the clock struck zero last March at the Moda Center in Portland, Ore., Southern California head coach Lindsay Gottlieb knew it was going to be different.

Yes, The Trojans fell to Connecticut, the season ended and they were one step away from their first trip to the Final Four since 1986. But the moment her team walked into the locker room, Gottlieb knew the bar had officially been raised.

USC women’s basketball was back and ready to once again become one of the premier schools in the sport.

“The bar is high right now and we want to be one of the best teams in the country,” Gottlieb said.

It’s been quite the climb for USC as Gottlieb enters his fourth season at the helm. The team showed progress in its first two seasons, going from 12-16 in its first year to 21-10 and earning a nine-year NCAA berth in 2023.

However, few saw how far the Trojans would go last season. Gottlieb signed a high school prospect in the country – a local prodigy Ju Ju Watkinsbut USC was picked to finish sixth in a loaded Pac-12. Instead, they won 29 games – their most since 1985-86 – won the Pac-12 conference tournament for the first time in 10 years and were the No. 1 seed in the tournament.

None of this would have been possible without Watkins. She scored 32 points in her first game — a school record for a freshman debut — in an upset win over Ohio State. She scored a school-record 51 points against Stanford, had 14 games with at least 30 points, set national freshman record with 920 points and her 27.1 points per game was second in the nation behind Kaitlin Clark.

Juju Watkins lived up to her high expectations

It may have only been one season, but the high expectations Watkins began her career with are already being realized.

“When I decided to get involved, it was to bring back the legacy of winning and that hype around USC women’s basketball and Los Angeles basketball in general,” Watkins said. “It was very, very interesting to see how it all came together.”

After a stellar season, it’s easy to see why Watkins is the 2024-25 Big Ten Coaches Preseason Player of the Year and the favorite to win National Player of the Year honors.

Gottlieb joked that the biggest challenge she has when it comes to Watkins is figuring out what she wants her co-star to get her for Christmas, given that she’s also dominated the name, image, and likeness Watkins has deals with companies like Gatorade, AT&T, and more signed a multi-year contract with Nike this is one of the richest shoe deals in women’s basketball.

With so much attention and the play to back it up, Watkins is definitely a contender to be the biggest star in the sport now that Clarke has moved on to the WNBA.

“She’s definitely going to be one of the standout faces of the collegiate women’s game this year,” said ESPN analyst and Basketball Hall of Famer Rebecca Lobo. “There’s a lot to be excited about in women’s college basketball, and I think JuJu is one of those players that people really want to see.”

Watkins said she spent most of the offseason working on her left arm, and Gottlieb added that she has become a more vocal leader on the team as she continues to manipulate the defense.

And yes, she is still working on her glasses. Whenever the team gets a break from practice, you’ll often see Watkins still on the court throwing shots.

“Nothing she does surprises me anymore,” Gottlieb said of Watkins. “JuJu makes it easy because she puts this team, she puts basketball, she puts me, she puts USC before anything individual for her, she really does.

“She’s a 19-year-old girl who’s only focused on winning and helping me and this team achieve excellence.”

USC expects to benefit from an influx of talent

Besides Watkins, only one player returns in Rye Marshall, but Gottlieb has added to the roster. She brought in Kiki Iriafen, the Pac-12’s MVP last season with Stanford, and two-time Pac-12 commit Talia Von Oelhofen of Oregon State as part of one of the nation’s top transfer portals. Gottlieb said they are critical additions because not only do they bring veteran ability to lead alongside Watkins, but they also come from successful teams.

On the high school recruiting side, Gottlieb added six players ESPN’s Top 100 Recruitshighlighted by five-star recruits Kennedy Smith, Kaylee Haeckel and Avery Howell. Gottlieb hopes that the combination of the new and the experienced is the perfect recipe for success.

“We have several parts. I think versatility is going to be important for us,” Gottlieb said. “We are younger than people think. I’m playing a couple of freshmen in big roles, and at the same time we’ve got some really good veterans.”

Iriaphen and von Oelhoffen combined well with Watkins. Iriafen said Watkins “brings perfection” and the two are always looking out for each other on the court.

“There are so many great players around me, so I kind of play off of them, too,” she said. “You can expect anybody to go in there and get a bucket. You’re not just relying on two or three people.”

Smith could become a potential new star. She played at Etiwanda High School in Rancho Cucamonga and played against Watkins in high school, and now she’s stepping into a role similar to her current partner. Gottlieb and Watkins spoke highly of Smith, expecting her to see significant playing time. The word that comes up when people talk about her?

“Debt,” Watkins said.

USC Accepts ‘Target on Our Back’

All the great teams in every sport hope to be champions by the end of the season. However, they rarely talk about it publicly, usually opting for a “one game at a time” approach.

But this is not the case with these Trojans.

From the coaching staff to the players, they know they’re hoping to win the school’s first national championship since 1984, and they’re not shy about their pursuit of glory.

“It just feels like we need to go further than we did last year,” Watkins said.

USC begins the season ranked No. 3 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Pollfavorite to win the Big Ten in its first season in the league, earn the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Women’s Tournament and reach the Final Four.

Many eyes will see the USC march. Not only do they open the college basketball season in Paris against Mississippi in an ESPN televised game on Monday, more than half of the schedule will be televised across the country. This is in addition to several NIL deals that players have secured.

So, with Los Angeles shining brightly, the Trojans welcome the challenge.

“Our stage was high for all of us. We did not shy away from any expectations. We understand that this is associated with a great responsibility,” Gottlieb said. “Everything is a big stage and we have to be ready. We definitely have a goal.”